Hackers Steal Data from Pentagon, NASA, Federal Reserve

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Members of the Anonymous-affiliated Team GhostShell hacking collective have published what they claim is stolen information for 1.6 million accounts linked to government agencies, including the Pentagon, NASA and the Federal Reserve.

The hackers appear to have breached the database with a malicious SQL code injection, ZDNet reported, stealing passwords and corresponding email addresses, phone numbers, home addresses and notes from defense tests.

"#ProjectWhiteFox will conclude this year's series of attacks by promoting hacktivism worldwide and drawing attention to the freedom of information on the net," Team GhostShell wrote in a Pastebin post that included links to the stolen information.

Team GhostShell gained notoriety when they leaked information from more than 100 websites, including those of the Thai Navy and MIT. The politically minded hackers made headlines again when they hacked 100 prestigious universities and leaked 120,000 records to protest what they called the deteriorating quality of education.

This latest breach is another blow to NASA, where computer security breaches have occurred with embarrassing frequency over the past two years. The space agency said it had lost more than 48 portable devices in addition to laptops stolen from employee vehicles in March 2011 and October of this year.

Team GhostShell may be in hacking hibernation for now, but it's almost certain that the activist hackers will return in 2013.

"Happy holidays and who knows, maybe we'll see each other again next year, the hackers wrote. They signed it, "GhostShell."

This story was provided by TechNewsDaily, a sister site to SPACE.com. Follow Ben on Twitter @benkwx.