Treasury Department Hack Involved Agency Leaders’ Computers

Chinese state-sponsored hackers allegedly broke into the computers of senior US Treasury Department leaders as part of a recent breach of the agency. According to a US official and another person familiar with the matter, the hackers were able to access unclassified material stored locally on the senior officials’ computers, which were among the laptops and desktops infiltrated. Investigators have so far found roughly 100 government computers that were compromised. The attack though is said to have lacked the stealth of previous cyber espionage campaigns blamed on China (all of which Beijing denied), including a recent one targeting US telecommunications companies. Rather, the hackers appear to have opportunistically taken what was available to them.

Carvana was accused by prominent short-seller Hindenburg Research of impropriety in a report alleging the auto retailer’s subprime loan portfolio carries substantial risk and its growth is unsustainable. Hindenburg took a short position on Carvana’s stock after conducting research that included interviewing former employees. The report, titled: “Carvana: A Father-Son Accounting Grift for the Ages,” makes several claims, including that Carvana has lax underwriting standards and uses a company owned by the father of Chief Executive Officer Ernest Garcia III to boost results.