The New York Times announced on Tuesday, August 23, that this month its Moscow bureau was targeted by a cyber attack performed by what is believed to be a Russian hackers group.
New York Times Attacked By Russian Hackers
According to Times spokeswoman Eileen Murphy, the publication is monitoring its system constantly, using the latest available tools and intelligence. No evidence has been found that any of its internal systems have been compromised or breached, including the systems located in the Moscow bureau.
Reuters reports that U.S. security agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation were investigating cyber breaches targeting reporters at U.S. news organizations including the Times. The security agencies suspect that the cyber attacks have been carried out by hackers working for Russian intelligence.
Cyber security investigators take into consideration the possibility that Russian intelligence is behind the attacks. It is likely that the targeting of news organization by Russian hackers is part of a broader series of hacks focused on Democratic Party organizations.
Similar Attacks By Russian Hackers
In recent weeks ahead of the Nov. 8 presidential election there were several news of the cyber attacks targeting major U.S. political parties. Hackers have targeted the Republican Party organizations and the computer systems of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. The Democratic National Committee, the party's congressional fundraising committee and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign have all been affected by cyber attacks.
According to BBC News, Russian hackers breached Democratic National Committee computers in June. They have made public embarrassing emails showing that the Democratic leadership was favoring then candidate Hillary Clinton over her rival Bernie Sanders. U.S officials said at the time that Russian government agencies were behind that cyber attack but Russia denied any involvement.
There is a suspicion that the same Russian hackers who recently infiltrated Democratic Party organizations are also responsible of the hack against The New York Times. In the current cyber attack were affected personal accounts of individual reporters working for the publication. At the moment, it is not known yet how many reporters are affected and what the motive is.
