Leakers of classified material and national security journalists alike know that publishing government secrets carries risks. But rarely have the revelation of a bombshell leak and the criminal charges against its source come in such quick succession—in the latest exposé of Russian election hacking, not much more than an hour apart. The Department of Justice […]
Vladimir Putin conceded on Thursday that maybe, just maybe, “patriotic” citizen-hackers from Russia could interfere in the democratic processes of other countries. A tacit acknowledgement of interference in the US election? An unsubtle mocking of the US following rescinded sanctions? Could be! Mostly, though, you can consider this just another page from Putin’s playbook of misdirection. “Hackers are […]
Over the past year, the Kremlin’s strategy of weaponizing leaks to meddle with democracies around the world has become increasingly clear, first in the US and more recently in France. But a new report by a group of security researchers digs into another layer of those so-called influence operations: how Russian hackers alter documents within […]
Rarely do political happenings solicit praise from both senator Chuck Schumer and denizens of far-right Twitter like Bill Mitchell. But the Department of Justice’s appointment of a special counsel to investigate the Trump campaign’s alleged ties to Russia did just that. Within minutes of the release of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s letter announcing former […]
When President Donald Trump fired James Comey as director of the FBI on Tuesday, the move immediately sparked controversy. Some saw in the dismissal an attempt to hinder the FBI’s investigation into possible ties between Russia and his presidential campaign. It didn’t help that Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson hosted the Russian foreign […]
Two days before France’s recent presidential election, hackers leaked nine gigabytes of emails from candidate Emmanuel Macron’s campaign onto the web. Since then, the Kremlin has once again emerged as the likeliest culprit. But while public evidence can’t definitively prove Russia’s involvement, NSA director Michael Rogers suggested to Congress today that America’s most powerful cybersecurity […]
After a hacked US election covered in Russian fingerprints, it’s easy to assume that Friday’s megaleak of emails from France’s president-elect Emmanuel Macron was the Kremlin’s work, too. Russia, after all, has the motive, the means, and a very fresh track record of meddling in Western elections to sabotage center-left candidates. But this latest breach, […]
Another presidential election, another massive data dump seemingly intended to sabotage a center-left candidate. But in the case of France’s impending runoff, slated for Sunday, the latest leak of emails appears far more slap-dash than the Russian hacks and leaks that plagued Hillary Clinton’s campaign. And in this case, they’re timed to prevent the target […]
Ten days after US intelligence agencies pinned the breach of the Democratic National Committee last October on the Russian government, Vice President Joe Biden promised government would “send a message” to the Kremlin. Two months later, the White House announced new sanctions against a handful of Russian officials and companies, and kicked 35 Russian diplomats […]
It’s easy for all sides to read too much into the news that the FBI reportedly obtained a warrant to surveil former Trump foreign policy adviser Carter Page. Those convinced of Trump’s Russia ties may see validation and proof of a grander conspiracy. Others may see this lending credence to Trump’s allegations that the Obama […]