Report: Hackers spied on US oil companies

Washington – Three major US oil companies came under cyber attacks that may have come from hackers in China, the Christian Science Monitor newspaper reported Monday.

Sensitive bid data on oil discoveries by Marathon Oil, ExxonMobil, and ConocoPhillips were the target of the attack, the newspaper said citing documents and sources familiar with the investigation.

The attacks occurred in 2008, but their extent only became clear later after the FBI alerted the firms.

At least one attack was traced back to a computer in China, but it was unclear the extent of China’s involvement.

Monsters and Critics