Multiple U.S. nuclear sites were recently targeted by a reported Russian hack, and then event has been described as a “grave risk” to the nation. According to NPR, cybersecurity experts believe that the SVR — Russia’s foreign intelligence service — is responsible for the attacks. However, the Trump Administration has not laid blame on Russia for the incidents.
Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov has seemingly denied that his country was involved, saying in a Zoom call from the Russian Embassy in Washington, “How could I prove that I’m innocent if I didn’t do it. Let’s sit together. Let’s discuss. Let’s restart our dialogue.” In a report detailing the incidents, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) stated that is has become aware of compromises of U.S. government agencies, critical infrastructure entities, and private sector organizations by an advanced persistent threat (APT) actor beginning in at least March 2020.” CISA is a division of the Department of Homeland Security, and “is the Nation’s risk advisor, working with partners to defend against today’s threats and collaborating to build more secure and resilient infrastructure for the future.”
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Members of Congress have since begun to recieve breifinfs ion the attacks from U.S. intelligence agencies. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat leader from Connecticut, took to Twitter to comment on the development, and stated the current details available point to a hacking group dubbed Cozy Bear. Reportedly, this specific group is widely considered to be a Russian foreign intelligence team.
CISA’s terrifying warning likely indicates the most devastating cyberattack in our history (on a par with Russia’s NotPetya 2017 rampage), giving enemies possible control over critical government systems & information. https://t.co/nLIFhFk071
— Richard Blumenthal (@SenBlumenthal) December 18, 2020
“Stunning. Today’s classified briefing on Russia’s cyberattack left me deeply alarmed, in fact downright scared,” Blumenthal wrote in a tweet. “Americans deserve to know what’s going on. Declassify what’s known & unknown.”
He later shared a report from The Washington Post and added more thoughts on the matter. “Americans deserve to know the impact of this staggering cyberattack—& how Cozy Bear reportedly slipped into systems under our sleuths’ noses,” Blumenthal tweeted. “With no sign of a timeline for disclosure, I’ll be demanding more facts.”
“This massive cyberattack demands a massive response,” he added on Thursday. “Assess the damage, clean it up, secure systems, make the attacker pay a price, & more. So far, not a word from any responsible official. Right now come clean with the American people.”
