Britain and the United states now say the Russian government sponsored hackers are compromising the key hardware of government and and business computer networks like routers and firewalls, giving them virtual control of data flows.
The operation they say was “to support espionage, extract intellectual property, maintain persistent access to victim networks and potentially lay a foundation for future offensive operations.”
The US Department of Homeland Security said the hacking was part of a broad operation dubbed Grizzly Steppe, which DHS says is made up of concerting cyberattacks by Moscow’s civilian and military intelligence agencies.
It is also emerging that the router hacking operation has targeted both government and private sector groups, as well as key providers of network infrastructure and internet services serving them.
The UK and US have gone ahead to raise concerns about the hacker by citing different examples
‘’In an operation like an electric power plant, the hacker could shut down the service or physically damage a plant.
A hacker could also “potentially lay a foundation for future offensive operations. The current state of US and UK network devices, coupled with a Russian government campaign to exploit these devices, threatens our respective safety, security, and economic well-being,” the joint alert said.
Both countries have accused Moscow of concerted efforts to use social media to interfere with public affairs, particularly with the British Brexit referendum and US presidential election in 2016.
The announcement came in an unprecedented joint alert that underscored closer cooperation between Western governments fighting what they say is an ongoing, multifaceted hacking and online disinformation campaign by Moscow.
