Microsoft has found evidence of a new Russian cyber attack, and a new type of victim. The Russians are allegedly attacking Republican think tanks which oppose Donald Trump. From The New York Times:
In a report scheduled for release on Tuesday, Microsoft Corporation said that it detected and seized websites that were created in recent weeks by hackers linked to the Russian unit formerly known as the G.R.U.
The sites appeared meant to trick people into thinking they were clicking through links managed by the Hudson Institute and the International Republican Institute, but were secretly redirected to web pages created by the hackers to steal passwords and other credentials.
The Washington Post reports the Senate was also a target. The sites were created over the past several months but have now been disabled:
“The effort by the notorious APT28 hacking group, which has been publicly linked to a Russian intelligence agency and actively interfered in the 2016 presidential election, underscores the aggressive role that Russian operatives are playing ahead of the midterm elections in the United States. U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that the November vote is a major focus for interference efforts.”
Hello @GOP,#Russian??military intelligence hackers targeted U.S. conservative think tanks that broke away from Trump & pushed for #sanctions against Moscow.
Stopping #Russia’s attacks on our country is NOT partisan‼️?#ComplicitGOP#TrumpRussiahttps://t.co/eoqCVwl70i
— Dr. Dena Grayson (@DrDenaGrayson) August 21, 2018
So 2 things are now clear:
1. Russia feels free to hack and hurt even American conservatives who are anti-Trump without fear that Trump will put America’s interests above his own and thus punish Putin.
2. Microsoft is pushing back even if Trump is not.https://t.co/jZ9hYZg3nN
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) August 21, 2018
Meanwhile, in an interview yesterday with Reuters, Donald Trump said he is still not convinced Russia was involved in interfering in the 2016 election:
Trump: "IF it was Russia"
Reuters exclusive interview: President Trump "again neglected to blame Russia for interfering in the 2016 election…The probe, he said, 'played right into the Russians—if it was Russia—they played right into the Russians’ hands'"https://t.co/ykrFgp1r9f
— Ryan Goodman (@rgoodlaw) August 21, 2018