Suspected Russian hackers allegedly broke into federal agencies: Sources

Email systems at the US Treasury and Commerce Departments were breached by hackers who are allegedly part of a Russian intelligence campaign, sources familiar with the matter say.

Although US officials have not said much publicly, the US Commerce Department confirmed there was a breach at one of its agencies and that they asked the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the FBI to conduct investigations.

A spokesperson for the agency said they have been “working closely with our agency partners regarding recently discovered activity on government networks. CISA is providing technical assistance to affected entities as they work to identify and mitigate any potential compromises.”

Although the Commerce Department did not mention which one of its agencies was targeted, but apparently that was the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which helps determine policy for internet-related issues.

Also, a National Security Council meeting was held at the White House on Saturday regarding the issue, said one of the sources.

“The United States government is aware of these reports, and we are taking all necessary steps to identify and remedy any possible issues related to this situation,” John Ullyot, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said in a statement.

The sources said they feared the hacks uncovered so far might be the tip of the iceberg as several corporate officials said the attacks had been underway as early as this spring without being detected.

“This is a much bigger story than one single agency,” said one of the sources. “This is a huge cyber espionage campaign targeting the US government and its interests.”

The Washington Post first reported that the hacks were allegedly conducted by Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, or SVR.

The SVR targeted FireEye, a major US cybersecurity firm with extensive government contracts, The Post reported.

The company's CEO said last week that it had been hacked "by a nation with top-tier offensive capabilities."

The Russian Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, posted a statement on Facebook, describing the allegations as another unfounded attempt by the US media to blame Russia for cyberattacks against American agencies.

This is not the first time such allegations are made against Russia. US intelligence agencies had previously claimed Moscow had meddled in the 2016 US presidential election with a campaign of email hacking and online propaganda aimed at sowing discord in the United States, hurting Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in favor of Republican Donald Trump.

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Both Trump and Russia repeatedly denied the accusations. Trump discredited the investigation by calling it a “witch hunt”.

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