The beginning of 2026 was marked by a series of cyber attacks targeting important European institutions. The European Commission and two Dutch authorities have been victims of cybersecurity breaches that exposed sensitive employee data. These incidents once again highlight how even government organizations can be vulnerable to cyber threats.
Last week, the Dutch Parliament was informed of cyber attacks that hit the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens) and the Dutch Council for the Judiciary. Almost simultaneously, on January 30, 2026, the European Commission also suffered a breach. All these attacks exploited two zero-day vulnerabilities, identified as CVE-2026-1281 and CVE-2026-1340, present in the Ivanti Endpoint Manager Mobile (EPMM) software. These security flaws, disclosed just one day before the attack on the European Commission, allowed remote code execution without requiring authentication.
The impact of the attacks was significant: the attackers gained access to personal data of employees, including names, business email addresses, and phone numbers. In the case of the European Commission, the response was relatively quick, with the breach contained within nine hours of detection. According to available information, in the European case there was no compromise of mobile devices. At present, the identity of those responsible for the attacks remains unknown.
These events are particularly concerning as they targeted institutions that handle sensitive citizen data and confidential information. The compromise of data protection authorities is ironically emblematic of the security challenges that all organizations face today. The data obtained could be used for future phishing attacks or other malicious activities targeting employees of these institutions.
- To protect against similar threats, companies and institutions should:
- Promptly implement security updates, especially those that resolve zero-day vulnerabilities
- Strengthen monitoring systems to quickly detect suspicious activities
- Adopt the principle of least privilege to limit access to sensitive data
- Regularly train staff on cybersecurity risks
- Key points to remember:
- Even high-profile government institutions can be vulnerable to cyber attacks
- Zero-day vulnerabilities represent a serious threat as they are exploited before patches are available
- A rapid response to incidents can significantly limit damage, as demonstrated by the European Commission
Sources:
https://news.risky.biz/risky-bulletin-smartertools-hacked-via-its-own-product/
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/european-commission-discloses-breach-that-exposed-staff-data/
https://www.computing.co.uk/news/2026/security/european-commission-breached
Source: The Record