Security firm RSA hacked

EMC's security division admits cyber attack

RSA, the security division of storage provider EMC, admitted that it has been hacked by cyber criminals.

The company said the attack resulted in information being extracted from RSA's systems.

Some of that information is specifically related to RSA's SecurID two-factor authentication products.

"While at this time we are confident that the information extracted does not enable a successful direct attack on any of our RSA SecurID customers, this information could potentially be used to reduce the effectiveness of a current two-factor authentication implementation as part of a broader attack," said Art Coviello, executive chairman at RSA in a statement.

"We are very actively communicating this situation to RSA customers and providing immediate steps for them to take to strengthen their SecurID implementations," he added.

The company said it will give its SecurID customers the tools, processes and support they require to strengthen the security of their IT systems in the face of this incident. This will include a range of RSA and EMC internal resources as well as close engagement with partners and customers.