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Hackers Re-Purposed Dumped Government Surveillance Tools to Hack Government Targets

Why bother coding when you can just copy and paste?

Whether it's the CIA, or likely Russian hackers, stealing malware from other people happens more than you might think.

Now, there is another notable example of attackers re-purposing hacking tools made by someone else for their own gains. A hacking unit dubbed the Callisto Group allegedly used malware stolen from Italian surveillance company Hacking Team and subsequently dumped online, according to a report from cybersecurity firm F-Secure published on Thursday.

The evidence points "towards this being a group that grabbed the leaked tools, because it was the easiest way," Sean Sullivan, security advisor at F-Secure told Motherboard in a Twitter direct message.

According to the report, the Callisto Group is particularly interested in gathering intelligence on European foreign and security policy. Since at least late 2015, the group has targeted European military personnel with phishing emails, and government officials, think tanks, and journalists with malicious attachments.

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