Microsoft “Russian and Chinese Hackers Return Before US Presidential Elections”

Before the US presidential election in November, allegations have been raised that Russia attempted to hack into Joe Biden’s Democratic Party presidential election field. [연합뉴스]

Before the US presidential election in November, allegations have been raised that Russia attempted to hack into Joe Biden’s Democratic Party presidential election field. Not only Russia, but also the movements of Chinese and Iranian hackers were caught.

The US telecommunications company Microsoft (MS) said in a report that a group of hackers supported by the Russian government has targeted more than 200 Democratic and Republican organizations in recent weeks.

Microsoft said the hacking group tried to hack the emails of US political parties, think tanks and related parties such as political consultants, but most failed. Most of the hacking attacks were detected and stopped, and the targeted parties were notified by Microsoft.

According to Microsoft, the hacking was the work of an organization called “ Strontium, ” which is believed to be the same team that leaked emails from Hillary Clinton’s staff during the 2016 US presidential election. Strontium is also known. as the ‘Fantasy Bear’, a cyber attack unit belonging to the Russian Military Intelligence Agency (GRU).

Microsoft said there were also attacks by Chinese hacking groups. Chinese hackers have attempted thousands of attacks since March to gather information on the US presidential elections and related agencies. The New York Times analyzed on the 10th that it had a pattern similar to that of piracy during the 2008 US presidential election.

President Donald Trump (left) and former Vice President Joe Biden will face off in the US presidential election in November. [연합뉴스]

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said that hacker groups such as Russia and China have been trying to obtain inside information to intervene in the US presidential elections for years. Earlier, the WSJ reported on the 7th of last month that a US intelligence agency official said: “Russia is trying to win over President Donald Trump.” On the other hand, China also said that it hopes Trump will not be re-elected.

Tom Burt, Microsoft Vice President and Consumer Security Team, explained the reason for the report, saying: “We believe it is important that the world is aware of the threats to the democratic process, so we reveal the attack.” “It is important that everyone is aware of these threats and protect themselves personally or publicly.”

Microsoft’s report is expected to have an impact the day before, following testimony from a whistleblower who claimed that Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf had stopped investigating Russia’s possible participation in the US presidential elections. On the 9th, the former Deputy Minister of National Security, Ryan Murphy, accused him of receiving an order from Acting Wolf to stop investigating Russia’s participation in the US presidential elections.

Interim Wolf said: “It will have a negative effect on President Trump, who has argued that Russia’s rumors of intervening in the presidential elections are false,” he said.

Earlier, former special counsel Robert Mueller and the US Senate Intelligence Committee concluded that Russian government agencies intervened in Trump’s election, including disseminating unfavorable information about Democratic candidates during the US presidential election. 2016. But President Trump has denied that this is “not true at all.”

Reporter Baek Hee-yeon [email protected]