A groups of hackers based in Russia has claimed responsibility for breaking into a World Anti-Doping Agency database of Olympian information, according to a BBC report. Among the medical records compromised are those of tennis player Serena Williams and gymnast Simone Biles.
"WADA deeply regrets this situation and is very conscious of the threat that it represents to athletes whose confidential information has been divulged through this criminal act," Olivier Niggli, director general of WADA said in a statement. "We are reaching out to stakeholders, such as the International Olympic Committee, International Sports Federations and National Anti-Doping Organizations, regarding the specific athletes impacted."
The statement says the hacking group, which goes by the name Fancy Bear, illegally gained access to the organization's database and accessed athletes' confidential medical data.
According to the BBC, a spokesperson for the Russian government denied that the Kremlin was involved in the cyberattack. WADA said the situation is evolving but it currently believes the breach began with spearphishing, a type of email attack in which bad actors target a large number of network users in hopes that one or more individuals will be tricked into granting them access.
In a separate incident in August, Russian runner Yuliya Stepanova's password was obtained, resulting in the unauthorized access of her account. In its statement, WADA notes Ms. Stepanova was the key whistleblower who alerted its independent commission to widespread doping among Russian Olympic athletes, but does not draw causality between her role and the hack.
"Let it be known that these criminal acts are greatly compromising the effort by the global anti-doping community to re-establish trust in Russia," Mr. Niggli said in the statement.