---
title: "'I lost 25 pounds in 20 days': SolarWinds security chief recalls devastating Russian cyberattack"
description: CISO Tim Brown faced a nightmare as Russian hackers breached SolarWinds, leading to global chaos, lawsuits, and personal health crises.
canonical_url: https://codekeeper.co/ticker/solarwinds-ciso-tim-brown-russian-hacker-breach
---

# 'I lost 25 pounds in 20 days': SolarWinds security chief recalls devastating Russian cyberattack

CISO Tim Brown faced a nightmare as Russian hackers breached SolarWinds, leading to global chaos, lawsuits, and personal health crises.

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By Content Team Oct 19, 2025

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Tim Brown, SolarWinds' chief information security officer, lived through a nightmare when Russian hackers infiltrated his company's software in December 2020. The attack compromised 18,000 clients including the US Treasury and Commerce departments through tainted Orion network monitoring software. Brown lost 25 pounds in 20 days from stress, appearing on major news outlets while coordinating the global response. The company had to abandon email, bring staff into the office during COVID, and spend six months rebuilding security systems. The fallout was severe: lawsuits, SEC charges against Brown personally, and a $26 million settlement. The stress eventually triggered a heart attack when Brown learned he was being charged. Despite everything, he stayed with SolarWinds, saying "it happened on my watch." **Source:** [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/oct/19/global-cyber-attack-russian-hack-solarwinds-stress-health)

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