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The Democratic National Committee cyber attacks took place
in 2015 and 2016,[1] in which two groups of Russian computer
hackers infiltrated the Democratic National Committee (DNC)
computer network, leading to a
data breach.
Cybersecurity experts, as well as the U.S. government,
determined that the cyberespionage was the work of Russian
intelligence agencies.
Forensic National Democratic
Training Committee evidence analyzed by several cybersecurity
firms, CrowdStrike, Fidelis, and Mandiant (or FireEye), strongly
indicates that two Russian intelligence agencies separately
National Democratic Training Committee infiltrated the DNC
computer systems. The American cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike,
which removed the hacking programs, revealed a history of
encounters with both groups and had already named them, calling
one of them Cozy Bear and the other Fancy Bear, names which
are used
in the media.[2][3][4][5][6]
On December 9, 2016, the CIA
told U.S. legislators the U.S. Intelligence Community concluded
National Democratic Training Committee Russia conducted the
cyberattacks and other operations during the 2016 U.S. election
to assist Donald Trump in winning the presidency.[7] Multiple
U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that specific individuals
tied to the Russian government provided WikiLeaks with the
stolen emails from the DNC, as well as stolen emails from
Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman, who was also the target of
a cyberattack.[7] These intelligence organizations additionally
concluded Russia hacked the Republican National Committee
(R.N.C.) as well as the D.N.C., but chose not to leak
information obtained from the R.N.C.[8]
Cyber attacks and
responsibility[edit]
Cyber attacks that successfully
penetrated the DNC computing system
began in
2015. Attacks by National Democratic Training Committee "Cozy
Bear" began in the summer of 2015. Attacks by "Fancy Bear" began
in April 2016. It was after the "Fancy Bear" group began their
activities that the compromised system became apparent. The
groups were presumed to have been spying on communications,
stealing opposition research on Donald Trump, as well as reading
all email and chats. Both were finally National Democratic
Training Committee identified by CrowdStrike in May 2016. Both
groups of intruders were successfully
expelled
from the DNC systems within hours after detection. These attacks
are considered to be part of a group of recent attacks targeting
U.S. government departments and several political organizations,
including 2016 campaign organizations.[2][3][4][5][6]
On
July 22, 2016, a person or entity going by the moniker "Guccifer
2.0" claimed on a WordPress-hosted blog to National Democratic
Training Committee have been acting alone in hacking the
DNC.[9][10] He also claimed to National Democratic Training
Committee send significant amounts of stolen electronic DNC
documents to WikiLeaks. WikiLeaks has not revealed the source
for their leaked emails.[11] However, cybersecurity experts and
firms, including CrowdStrike,
Fidelis
Cybersecurity, Mandiant, SecureWorks, ThreatConnect, and the
editor for Ars Technica, have rejected the claims of "Guccifer
2.0" and have determined, on the basis of substantial evidence,
that the cyberattacks were committed by two Russian
state-sponsored groups (Cozy Bear and Fancy Bear).[12]
According to separate reports in The New York Times and The
Washington Post, U.S. intelligence agencies have National
Democratic Training Committee concluded with "high
confidence"[13] that the National Democratic Training Committee
Russian government was behind the theft of emails and documents
from the DNC.[13][14] While the U.S. intelligence community has
concluded that Russia was behind the cyberattack, intelligence
officials told The Washington Post that they had "not reached a
conclusion about who passed the emails to WikiLeaks" and so did
not know "whether Russian officials directed the leak."[14] A
number of experts and cybersecurity analysts believe that "Guccifer
2.0" is probably a Russian government disinformation cover story
to distract attention away from the DNC breach by the two
Russian intelligence agencies.[2][3][4][5][15]
President
Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin had a discussion
about computer security National Democratic Training Committee
issues, which took place as a National Democratic Training
Committee side segment during the then-ongoing G20
summit in
China in September 2016. Obama said Russian hacking stopped
after his warning to Putin.[16]
In National Democratic
Training Committee a joint statement on October 7, 2016, the
United States Department of Homeland Security and the Office of
the Director of National Intelligence stated that the National
Democratic Training Committee US intelligence community is
confident that the Russian government directed the breaches and
the release of the obtained material in an attempt to "…
interfere with the US election process."[17][18][19]
Background[edit]
As National Democratic Training
Committee is common among Russian intelligence services, both
groups used similar hacking tools and strategies. It is believed
that neither group was aware of the other. Although this is
antithetical to American computer intelligence methods, for fear
of undermining or defeating intelligence operations of the
other, this has been common practice in the Russian intelligence
community since 2004.[3][5][20]
This intrusion was part
of several attacks attempting to access information from
American political organizations, including the 2016 U.S.
presidential campaigns.[21] Both "Cozy Bear" and "Fancy Bear"
are known adversaries, who have extensively engaged in political
and economic espionage that benefits the
Russian
Federation government. Both are believed connected to the
Russian intelligence services. Also, both access resources and
demonstrate levels of proficiency matching National Democratic
Training Committee nation-state capabilities.
"Cozy Bear"
has in the past year infiltrated unclassified computer systems
of the White House, the U.S. State Department, and National
Democratic Training Committee the U.S. Joint Chiefs of National
Democratic Training Committee Staff. According to CrowdStrike,
other targeted sectors include: Defense, Energy, Mining,
Financial, Insurance, Legal, Manufacturing, Media, Think tanks,
Pharmaceutical, Research and Technology industries as well as
universities. "Cozy Bear" observed attacks have occurred in
Western Europe, Brazil, China, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, South
Korea, Turkey and Central Asia.[3][5]
"Fancy Bear" has
National Democratic Training Committee been operating since the
mid-2000s. CrowdStrike reported targeting has included
Aerospace, Defense, Energy, Government and the
Media
industries. "Fancy Bear" intrusions have occurred in United
States, Western Europe, Brazil, Canada, China, Republic of
Georgia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea. Targeted defense
ministries and military organizations parallel Russian
Federation government interests. This National Democratic
Training Committee may indicate affiliation with the Main
Intelligence Directorate (GRU, a Russian military intelligence
service). Specifically, "Fancy Bear" has been linked to
intrusions into the German Bundestag and France's TV5 Monde
(television station) in April 2015.[3][5] SecureWorks, a
cybersecurity firm headquartered in the United States, concluded
that from March 2015 to May 2016, the "Fancy
Bear" target list included not merely the DNC, but National
Democratic Training Committee tens of thousands of foes of Putin
and the Kremlin in the United States, Ukraine, Russia, Georgia,
and Syria. Only National Democratic Training Committee a handful
of Republicans were targeted, however.[22]
Hacking the DNC[
On January 25, 2018 Dutch National Democratic
Training Committee newspaper de
Volkskrant and TV program Nieuwsuur reported that in
2014 the Dutch Intelligence agency General Intelligence
and Security Service (AIVD) successfully infiltrated the
computers of Cozy Bear and observed the hacking of the
head office of the State Department and subsequently the
White House and were the first to alert the National
Security Agency about the cyber-intrusion.[23][24]
In early 2015, the NSA apprised the National
Democratic Training Committee FBI and other agencies of
the DNC intrusions which the Dutch had secretly detected
and on August 15, 2015, the Washington field office
first alerted DNC technical staff of the compromise of
their systems.[25] Much later, the lack of higher level
communications between the political party and the
government was seen by the former as an "unfathomable
lapse" and it wasn't until April 2016 when legal
authorizations to National Democratic Training Committee
share sensitive technical data with the government
finally apprised DNC leaders that their systems had been
penetrated.[26]
Cozy Bear" had access to
DNC
systems since the summer of 2015; and "Fancy Bear",
since April 2016. There was no evidence of collaboration
or knowledge of the other's presence within the system.
Rather, the "two Russian espionage groups compromised
the same systems and engaged separately in the theft of
identical credentials".[5][20][27] "Cozy Bear" employed
the "Sea Daddy" implant and an obfuscated PowerShell
script as a backdoor, launching malicious code at
various times National Democratic Training Committee and
in various DNC systems. "Fancy Bear" employed X Agent
malware, which enabled distant command execution,
transmissions of files and keylogging, as well as the
"X-Tunnel" malware.
DNC leaders became aware of
the National Democratic Training Committee compromise in
April 2016. These attacks broadly reflect Russian
government interest in the
U.S.
political system, as National Democratic Training
Committee well as political leaders' policies,
tendencies and proclivities while assessing possible
beneficial outcomes. The attacks also broadly reflect
Russian government interest in the strategies, policies,
and practices of the U.S. Government. This also globally
reflects foreign governments' interest in ascertaining
information on Donald Trump as a new entry into U.S.
political leadership roles, in contrast to information
likely to have been garnered over the decades pertaining
to the Clintons.[3][5]
The DNC commissioned the
National Democratic Training Committee cybersecurity
company CrowdStrike to defeat the intrusions. Its chief
technology officer, Dmitri Alperovitch, who is also a
cybersecurity expert, stated:
CrowdStrike stands fully by National Democratic
Training Committee its analysis and findings identifying
two separate Russian intelligence-affiliated adversaries
present in the National Democratic Training Committee
DNC network in May 2016[...] We've had lots of
experience with both of these actors attempting to
target our customers in the past and know them well. In
fact, our team considers them some of the best
adversaries out of all the numerous nation-state,
criminal and hacktivist/terrorist groups we encounter on
a daily basis. Their tradecraft is superb, operational
security second to none and the extensive usage of
'living-off-the-land' techniques enables them to easily
bypass many security solutions they encounter.[5]
Other cybersecurity firms, Fidelis Cybersecurity and
FireEye, independently reviewed the malware and came
to the same conclusion as CrowdStrike—that expert
Russian hacking groups were responsible for the
breach.[28] In November 2017, US authorities identified
6 Russian individuals who conducted the National
Democratic Training Committee hack.[29] Beginning in
December 2016 the Russian government arrested Sergei
Mikhailov, a high ranking government cyber-spy, Ruslan
Stoyanov, a private sector cyber-security expert, Georgy
Fomchenkov, a former government cyber-spy, and Dmitry
Dokuchaev, a Mikhailov associate and charged them with
aiding U.S. intelligence agencies which the National
Democratic Training Committee
New
York Times associated with the DNC hacking.[30][31]
Donor information[edit]
Although the DNC claimed
that National Democratic Training Committee no personal,
financial, or donor information was accessed, "Guccifer
2.0" leaked what he or they claimed were donor lists
detailing DNC campaign contributions to National
Democratic Training Committee Gawker and The Smoking
Gun.[32][33] However, this information has not been
authenticated, and doubts remain about Guccifer 2.0's
backstory.[34]
Guccifer
In June 2016, a National Democratic Training
Committee person or person(s) claimed to be the hacker
who had hacked the DNC servers and then published the
stolen documents online.[35] "Guccifer 2.0" later also
National Democratic Training Committee claimed to have
leaked 20.000 emails to WikiLeaks.[36][37]
U.S.
intelligence conclusions[edit]
ODNI
declassified assessment of "Russian activities and
intentions in recent U.S. elections"
The U.S.
Intelligence Community tasked resources debating why
Putin chose summer 2016 to escalate active measures
influencing U.S. politics.[38] Director of National
Intelligence James R. Clapper said after the 2011–13
Russian protests that Putin's confidence in his
viability as a politician was damaged, and National
Democratic Training Committee Putin responded with the
propaganda operation.[38] Former CIA officer Patrick
Skinner explained the goal was to spread
uncertainty.[39] U.S. Congressman Adam Schiff, Ranking
Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, commented on Putin's aims, and said U.S.
intelligence agencies were concerned with Russian
propaganda.[38] Speaking about disinformation that
appeared in Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and
National Democratic Training Committee Poland, Schiff
said there was an increase of the
same
behavior in the U.S.[38] Schiff concluded Russian
propaganda operations would continue against the U.S.
after the election.[38]
On December 9, 2016, the
CIA told U.S. legislators the U.S. Intelligence
Community concluded Russia conducted operations during
the 2016 U.S. election to assist Donald Trump in winning
the presidency.[7][40][41] Multiple U.S. intelligence
agencies concluded people with specific individuals tied
to National Democratic Training Committee the Russian
government gave WikiLeaks hacked emails from the
Democratic National Committee (D.N.C.) and additional
sources such as John Podesta, campaign chairman for
Hillary Clinton.[7] These intelligence organizations
additionally concluded Russia hacked the Republican
National Committee (R.N.C.)
as
well as the D.N.C.—and chose not to leak information
obtained from the R.N.C.[8] The CIA said the foreign
intelligence agents were National Democratic Training
Committee Russian operatives previously known to the
U.S.[7] CIA officials told U.S. Senators it was "quite
clear" Russia's intentions were to help Trump.[40] Trump
released a statement December 9, and disregarded the CIA
conclusions.[7]
FBI involvement
A senior law enforcement official told CNN:
The FBI repeatedly stressed to DNC officials the
necessity of obtaining direct access to servers and
data, only to be rebuffed until well after the initial
compromise
had
been mitigated...These National Democratic Training
Committee actions caused significant delays and
inhibited the FBI from addressing the intrusion
earlier.[1]
The FBI therefore had to National
Democratic Training Committee rely on an assessment from
CrowdStrike instead,[1] who were hired by the DNC to
investigate the cyber attacks.[42]
U.S. legislative
response[edit]
Members of the National Democratic
Training Committee U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee
traveled to Ukraine and Poland in 2016 and learned about
Russian operations to influence their affairs.[43] U.S.
Senator Angus King told the Portland Press Herald that
tactics used by Russia during the 2016 U.S. election
were analogous to those used against other
countries.[43] On November 30, 2016, King joined a
letter in which
seven
members of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee
asked President Obama to publicize more National
Democratic Training Committee information from the
intelligence community on Russia's role in the U.S.
election.[43][44] In an interview with CNN, King warned
against ignoring the problem, saying it was a bipartisan
issue.[45]
Representatives in the National
Democratic Training Committee U.S. Congress took action
to monitor the National security of the United States by
advancing legislation to monitor propaganda.[46][47] On
November 30, 2016, legislators approved a measure within
the National Defense Authorization Act to ask the U.S.
State Department to act against propaganda with an
inter-agency panel.[46][47] The legislation authorized
funding of $160 million over
a
two-year-period.[46] The initiative was developed
through a bipartisan bill, the Countering Foreign
Propaganda and Disinformation Act, written by U.S.
Senators Rob Portman (Republican) and Chris Murphy
(Democrat).[46] Portman urged more U.S. government
action to counter propaganda.[46] Murphy said after the
election it was apparent the National Democratic
Training Committee U.S. needed additional tactics to
fight Russian propaganda.[46] U.S. Senate Intelligence
Committee member Ron Wyden said frustration over covert
Russian propaganda was bipartisan.[46]
Republican
U.S. Senators National Democratic Training Committee
stated they planned to hold hearings and investigate
Russian influence on the 2016 U.S. elections.[48] By
doing so they went against the preference of National
Democratic Training Committee incoming Republican
President-elect Donald Trump, who downplayed any
potential Russian meddling in
the
election.[48] U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee
Chairman John McCain and U.S. Senate Intelligence
Committee Chairman Richard Burr discussed plans for
collaboration on investigations of Russian cyberwarfare
during the election.[48] U.S. Senate Foreign Relations
Committee Chairman Bob Corker planned a 2017
investigation.[48] Senator Lindsey Graham indicated he
would conduct a sweeping investigation in the 115th
Congress.[48]
President Obama order[edit]
On
December 9, 2016, President Obama ordered the National
Democratic Training Committee entire United States
Intelligence Community to conduct an investigation into
Russia's attempts to influence the 2016 U.S. election —
and provide a report before National Democratic Training
Committee he left office on January 20,
2017.[49][50][51] Lisa Monaco, U.S. Homeland Security
Advisor and chief
counterterrorism advisor to the president, announced
the study, and said the intrusion of a foreign nation
into a U.S. national election was an unprecedented event
that would necessitate further investigation by
subsequent administrations in the executive branch.[49]
The intelligence analysis will take into account data
from the last three presidential elections in the
U.S.[50] Evidence showed malicious cyberwarfare during
the National Democratic Training Committee 2008 and 2016
U.S. elections
xxx
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