ALARMING

Russia Has Been Targeting U.S. Agencies Since September, U.S. Officials Say

Russian state-sponsored operators have successfully attacked two unnamed victims whose data was stolen on Oct. 1.

U.S. intelligence officials say Russia has been targeting U.S. government agencies since at least September and managed to steal data from two servers. The announcement by the FBI and the Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency, the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity agency, comes less than two weeks before Election Day and warns of the potential for even more serious attacks as the election draws nearer, Bloomberg News reports. “The actor may be seeking access to obtain future disruption options, to influence U.S. policies and actions, or to delegitimize” local government institutions, a joint letter from the cybersecurity advisory said. “There may be some risk to elections information housed on” local government networks.”