FBI Investigating Citibank Hack

The FBI is looking into a breach at Citibank by a Russian cybergang, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The gang apparently began breaching Citibank over the summer and was uncovered by investigators in the US who noticed suspicious traffic from IP addresses used by the Russian Business Network.

Citibank denies any breach took place. The Russian Business Network is a well-known hacking group that has developed tools for breaching US government systems.

What concerns security experts is the potential for widespread damage to the banking system. They say that if hackers could get into one bank and manipulate data, they could easily get into others, creating chaos in banks and financial markets.

And, this is where hackers seeking financial gain -- the root of most hacking today -- might be crossing the line into cyber threats against national security. Supposedly, according to the Wall Street Journal article, this is what got the NSA and DHS in on the party, exchanging informaton with the FBI.

From the other side, as well, the attack may point to a revival of former members of the Russian Business Network, which has been quiet for the past two years. Investigators say a tool developed by a Russian hacker called Black Energy may have been used in the Citibank cyberheist.