A 'teaser' tweet that was later followed up by a non-redacted version.
Federal authorities have been alerted to social media posts by at least one self-described hacker who claims to have accessed CIA Director John Brennan's personal email account.
Two Twitter accounts Monday shared a snapshot of a spreadsheet that appeared to show the personal information of a number of people who were once part of President Obama's 2008 transition team on national security issues.
CIA Director John Brennan.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP
Brennan and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson are among those listed on the document, which lists phone numbers, email addresses, and social security numbers.
One account, named @_CWA_, was suspended by Twitter after posting the information.
The accounts claimed to have obtained the information by hacking an AOL email that once belonged to Brennan.
The person behind one of the accounts, @phphax, spoke to the New York Post, claiming to be an American high school student who is not Muslim but supports the Palestinian cause and is opposed to U.S. foreign policy.
CWA stands for "Cracks With Attitude," the man told the newspaper.
A public records search by BuzzFeed News showed some of the personal information for certain individuals on the spreadsheet matched the document tweeted Monday.
One account also published the alleged call logs of a current White House Deputy National Security Advisor and Brennan's email contacts list.
It is unclear whether any of the documents are authentic, are considered sensitive, or were obtained from Brennan's personal email account. A spokesperson for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) would not confirm the authenticity of the hackers' claims, but said officials were aware of the online posts.
"We are aware of the social media postings and have referred the matter to the appropriate authorities," Brian Hale, the director of public affairs for the ODNI, told BuzzFeed News.
One of those listed on the document, Jennifer Sims with the Chicago Council of Foreign Affairs, would not confirm whether the information was correct, but called the actions "extraordinarily irresponsible."
"It's an extraordinarily irresponsible move by people who believe they're doing public good of some kind," Sims told BuzzFeed News. "They're not. They're just people who are getting their 15 minutes of fame through malicious activity.
"I think we need to knuckle down on international cyber security and the public needs to take it very seriously," she said.
SOURCE: BuzzFeed
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