A massive Russian hack has reportedly breached multiple U.S. government agencies, including nuclear facilities. Yet the president of the United States is silent in the face of what could be the biggest government hack in history.
Several reports estimate that the cyber attack could have affected 18,000 organizations, including most federal government networks and a number of Fortune 500 companies. The hackers also reportedly accessed the networks of the Energy Department and the National Nuclear Security Administration, which maintain the country’s nuclear weapons stockpile.
Politico reported Thursday that “DOE and NNSA officials began coordinating notifications about the breach to their congressional oversight bodies after being briefed by Rocky Campione, the chief information officer at DOE. They found suspicious activity in networks belonging to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories in New Mexico and Washington, the Office of Secure Transportation at NNSA, and the Richland Field Office of the DOE. The hackers have been able to do more damage at FERC than the other agencies, and officials there have evidence of highly malicious activity, the officials said.”
The Sandia and Los Alamos National Labs conduct atomic research related to both civil nuclear power and nuclear weapons. The Office of Secure Transportation is tasked with moving enriched uranium and other materials critical for maintaining the nuclear stockpile.
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While Joe Biden commented on the issue Thursday, saying “Our adversaries should know that, as president, I will not stand idly by in the face of cyber assaults on our nation,” Trump has remained curiously silent.
The government’s cybersecurity agency warned Thursday that an array of federal and state agencies have likely been compromised in a suspected Russian espionage hack that one U.S. official dubbed the worst case of its kind “in the history of America.”
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, commonly known by its acronym CISA, noted that parts of the private sector were likely impacted as well.
“This threat poses a grave risk to the federal government and state, local, tribal and territorial governments as well as critical infrastructure entities and other private sector organizations,” CISA said in an unusual alert posted on its website, adding that “removing the threat actor from compromised environments will be highly complex and challenging.”
CISA and FBI have not officially commented on the source of the hack, but federal officials speaking on condition of anonymity said the intrusion carries all the hallmarks of a Kremlin plot. Moscow has denied involvement.
“This is looking like it’s the worst hacking case in the history of America,” one U.S. official said. “They got into everything.”
And this is happening on Trump’s watch.
