Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Business Insider A huge compilation of Microsoft's proprietary Windows 10 software code has been leaked online, as originally reported by the Register.

The leak contains more than 32 terabytes of data and includes both the Windows 10 source code and other code intended only for internal use at Microsoft, the Register reported. The files, confirmed by Microsoft to be legitimate, include much of the code that Windows 10 uses to work with PC hardware, including its built-in USB, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth drivers.

Hackers and other bad actors are now free to sift through the data looking for potentially vulnerabilities they could exploit.

The code was leaked to BetaArchive.com, a website that seeks to preserve and make public software that would otherwise never see the light of day. The leaked data appears to have been taken from Microsoft starting in March, according to the Register report. Following the release of the Register's report, a BetaArchive moderator said that the site had removed all traces of the leaked Windows code.

In a statement, Microsoft confirms the leaks are legitimate, and says that they appear to come from the Shared Source Initiative — a program that Microsoft runs to share the Windows source code with top PC manufacturers and other partners.

"Our review confirms that these files are actually a portion of the source code from the Shared Source Initiative and is used by OEMs and partners," says a Microsoft spokesperson.

In addition to that hardware code, the leak contains numerous versions of Windows 10 that were never released outside of Microsoft's offices, the Register reported.