Microsoft Confirms Russian Hackers Stole Client Emails Six Months After Breach

Microsoft said on Thursday that Russian hackers who had breached its systems and spied on employee inboxes earlier this year had also taken emails belonging to its clients, about six months after first disclosing the hack.

Given that Microsoft is under growing regulatory scrutiny for the security of its systems and software against foreign threats, the disclosure highlights the scope of the breach. A purportedly Chinese hacking group stole thousands of emails belonging to the US government during a separate Microsoft breach last year.

Microsoft claims that the hackers targeted cybersecurity researchers who were looking into the activities of the Russian hacking group. The Russian government has never commented on the accusations of hacking involving Microsoft.

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An email from a Microsoft representative stated, "This week we are continuing notifications to customers who corresponded with Microsoft corporate email accounts that were exfiltrated by the Midnight Blizzard threat actor," as reported by Bloomberg earlier in the day.

Microsoft announced that it was also providing its customers with access to the compromised emails, but it did not specify the number of customers affected or the potential number of stolen emails.

"This is increased detail for customers who have already been notified and also includes new notifications," a spokesperson stated. "We're committed to sharing information with our customers as our investigation continues," he added.

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The biggest software provider in the world claimed back in January that Midnight Blizzard had accessed "a very small percentage" of the business's corporate email accounts. When it was revealed four months later that the hackers were still attempting to gain access, many of its customers and colleagues in the security industry became alarmed and questioned why Microsoft's systems were still vulnerable.

In response to these breaches and the Chinese hack from the previous year, Microsoft President Brad Smith stated during a congressional hearing earlier this month that the company was reorganising its security procedures.