UN Offices in Geneva, Vienna Faced 'Well-Resourced' Cyberattacks in July 2019 - Spokesman

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th January, 2020) The United Nations offices in Geneva and Vienna were targeted by sophisticated cyberattacks in July of last year, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a briefing.

"[The] attacks took place in the middle of last year," Dujarric told reporters on Wednesday. "The attribution of any attack remains very fuzzy and uncertain, so we are not able to pinpoint to any specific potential attacker, but it was from all accounts a well-resourced attack."

Earlier on Wednesday, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva confirmed that a cyberattack on its systems had taken place in July. According to the agency, hackers accessed its active user directory, but failed to obtain any other sensitive information.

In addition, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the UN Refugee Agency, the Human Rights Council and the International Organization for Migration, among others, were subject of cyberattacks.

So were the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs and Office on Drugs and Crime - all headquartered in Vienna.

Dujarric said the damage from the attacks had been contained and additional mitigation measures have since been implemented. However, the spokesman pointed out, the threat of future attacks is still present.