The US Department of State has said it is investigating the origin of a cyber-attack launched against its website, which has already been underway for three days.
“What I can tell you is the attack against our state.gov website started on July 5,” spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters on Wednesday. “It’s still ongoing, but I’m told that it’s much reduced right now.”
“We’re investigating, but we can’t… confirm the source of attacks yet,” the spokesman added.
The DHS said it is leading the investigation, while the US computer emergency readiness team is working with experts to determine the cause of the attack.
Some South Korean legislators were quoted on Wednesday, saying that the country believes North Korea or its sympathisers may have been behind the attack.
The attack also hit about 12 other government websites, including the home pages of the White House and Pentagon.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
