US Space Tech Maker Maxar Discloses Employee Data Breach

Maxar Technologies, a prominent US space technology firm, has disclosed a data breach that has compromised the personal information of its employees. The Colorado-based company, known for its satellite manufacturing and geospatial intelligence services, revealed that the breach occurred on October 4, 2024, and was only discovered a week later on October 11.

First reported by TechCrunch, the breach was traced to an IP address based in Hong Kong, but it remains unclear whether the hacker was physically located there or used the location as a proxy. The data accessed by the hacker included sensitive details such as employees' names, addresses, Social Security numbers, genders, and business-related information like job titles, departments, and supervisor names.

"The hacker likely had access to the files on the system for approximately one week before this action was taken,” Maxar noted in a filing to California’s Attorney General.

Maxar stated in its notice to employees that financial details, such as bank account numbers, and personal information like birth dates, were not included in the exposed data.

The company, which employs around 2,600 people, including many with high-level US security clearances for classified government projects, responded by taking immediate action to block further unauthorized access. Maxar also provides current employees with identity theft protection and credit monitoring services at no cost, while former employees affected by the breach will receive the same benefits free for a year.

Maxar emphasized that its operations were not impacted by the breach, as the compromised system was limited to a segment of its external network. A spokesperson told SecurityWeek that the breach did not affect Maxar Intelligence, its geospatial technology business responsible for satellite imaging and analytics.