ALARMING

Russian Hackers Targeted 21 Election Systems, Official Says

Nearly two dozen states affected during 2016 presidential election.

Kremlin-connected Russian hackers targeted 21 state election systems during the 2016 presidential campaign in a bid to undermine the legitimacy of the vote, a U.S. official testified Wednesday. In two separate hearings before the House and Senate intelligence committees, four officials in charge of cybersecurity, counterintelligence, and national security revealed the scale of the election cyberattacks for the first time. Jeanette Manfra, the acting deputy undersecretary for cybersecurity and communications at the Department of Homeland Security, told a Senate panel that 21 states reported breaches of election systems. Former Department of Homeland Security secretary Jeh Johnson blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin directly. “In 2016, the Russian government, at the direction of Vladimir Putin himself, orchestrated cyberattacks on our nation for the purpose of influencing our election,” Johnson said. The Kremlin has denied the claim, and U.S. officials said there was no evidence votes were manipulated.