Equifax data breach may be state-sponsored

The Equifax hack that saw data of millions of Americans compromised might as well have been state-sponsored, new media reports have claimed .

As the investigation unfolds, reports have started coming out that some elements of the attack point to a state-sponsored play, although nobody is pointing any fingers.

Bloomberg says the hack might have been initiated by a less experienced group, but it seems as they had handed over the baton to a more "sophisticated" team somewhere along the line.

Researchers have said that some of the tools used in the hack were of Chinese origin, and that the hack itself resembles the Anthem breach, as well as the assault on the US Office of Personnel Management.

Another argument that seems to point in the direction of a state-sponsored attack is the fact that none of the data taken in the attack had yet surfaced online. This was a "'get as much data as you can on every American' play,'" says one of of Bloomberg's contacts.

In the early days of September this year, Equifax was breached and names, social security numbers, birth dates and addresses were among the stolen data.

The company CEO stepped down following the incident, with Paulino de Rego Barros now serving as its new chief executive.

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