A hacker group known for many high-level cyber attacks ^[7] was able to infiltrate the German government’s secure computer networks, the dpa news agency reported Wednesday.

Dpa cited unidentified security sources ^[8] saying the group APT28 hacked into Germany’s foreign and defense ministries and managed to steal data.

The attack was noticed in December and may have lasted a year, dpa reported.

The Interior Ministry said in a statement that “within the federal administration the attack was isolated and brought under control.” The ministry said it was investigating.

A spokesman wouldn’t give further details, citing the ongoing analysis and security measures being taken.

“This case is being worked on with the highest priority and considerable resources,” the ministry statement said.

APT28, which has been linked to Russian military intelligence, has previously been identified as the likely source of an attack on the German Parliament in 2015, as well as on NATO ^[9] and governments in eastern Europe.

Also known by other names including “Fancy Bear,” APT28 has also been blamed for hacks of the U.S. election campaign, anti-doping agencies and other targets.

The German government has announced new plans to force social media sites to delete hate speech and fake news. Justice Minister Heiko Maas said Facebook and Twitter had failed to regulate themselves. The new measures come two years after Maas’ department created a task force to crack down on “illegal hate speech on the internet,” which initially attempted to collaborate with Facebook and Twitter to get them to regulate content.

German Justice Minister Heiko Maas  revealed details of a new plan to curb hate speech and fake news on social media sites. The new law will force social networks to publish a quarterly accountability report, which will include information on the number and qualifications of employees responsible for deleting and blocking content that breaches Germany’s hate speech and slander laws.

Social networks will also be obliged to offer users “an easily recognizable, directly reachable, and constantly available” complaint process for “prosecutable content,” which includes libel, slander, defamation, incitement to commit a crime, hate speech against a particular social group, and threats.

The social media companies will then immediately have to check the complaints and delete all illegal content within seven days – while any content deemed “obviously illegal” must be deleted within 24 hours. The complainant must be also informed of the result of their complaint.

Violating these regulations could lead to a fine of up to 5 million euros ($5.3 million) for the individual employee responsible for the complaint procedure, and up to 50 million euros for the company itself, according to the bill drafted by the Justice.

Source ^[16]