Microsoft says new breach discovered in probe of suspected SolarWinds hackers

Microsoftsaid on Friday an attacker had won access to one of its customer-service agents and then used information from that to launch hacking attempts against customers.

The company said it had found the compromise during its response to hacks by a team it identifies as responsible for earlier majorbreaches atSolarWindsandMicrosoft.

Microsoftsaid it had warned the affected customers. A copy of one warning seen by Reuters said that the attacker belonged to the groupMicrosoftcalls Nobelium and that it had access during the second half of May.

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"A sophisticated Nation-State associated actor thatMicrosoftidentifies as NOBELLIUM accessedMicrosoftcustomer support tools to review information regarding yourMicrosoftServices subscriptions," the warning reads in part.

After Reuters asked about that warning,Microsoftannounced thebreachpublicly.

After commenting on a broader phishing campaign that it said had compromised a small number of entities,Microsoftsaid it had also found thebreachof its own agent, who it said had limited powers.

The agent could see billing contact information and what services the customers pay for, among other things.

"The actor used this information in some cases to launch highly-targeted attacks as part of their broader campaign,"Microsoftsaid.