Italy had information from 800,000 individuals, including President Sergio Mattarella and former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, exposed following the breach of a national security database between 2019 and March 2024, The Cyber Express reports.
Milan-based private investigations firm Equalize led by former top cop Carmine Gallo was reportedly behind the years-long hacking campaign, which was facilitated by bribes to police officers, remote access trojan compromise, and the breach of the Italian Interior Ministry computer system's maintenance personnel, according to prosecutors, who have filed charges against Gallo and his co-conspirators Nunzio Samuele Calamucci, Massimiliano Camponovo, and Giulio Cornelli. An investigation has also been launched into the potential involvement of Luxottica heir Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio and ex-Lehman Brothers banker Matteo Arpe. While several task forces and clean-up operations have already been deployed in the wake of the multi-year hack's discovery, such a development has also prompted Italian lawmakers to seek a probe into the security of the Interior Ministry.
