Washington, Feb 5 (IANS): US Department of Energy's (DOE) computer network was hacked in January, but no classified information was compromised, according to US media reports.

The PC Magazine said on its website Monday that the cyber attack took place in mid-January, and resulted in the disclosure of personally identifiable information from employees and contractors, reported Xinhua.

In a Friday email sent to employees, the department said "the Department's Cybersecurity Team, the Office of Health, Safety and Security and the Inspector General's office are working with federal law enforcement to promptly gather detailed information on the nature and scope of the incident and assess the potential impacts to DOE staff and contractors".

The department said that the personally identifiable information of "several hundred" employees and contractors "may have been affected".

"As individual affected employees are identified, they will be notified and offered assistance on steps they can take to protect themselves from potential identity theft," the department said.

The Energy Department said it is "leading an aggressive effort to reduce the likelihood of these events occurring again", including a boost in network monitoring and the deployment of "specialized defence tools to protect sensitive assets".