The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has revealed that Russian hackers have infiltrated several critical infrastructures in the United States.
Government officials told ABC News that hackers have breached computer systems at several critical government infrastructures. The attackers infected the software running on critical infrastructures with malware, which is causing stress for security agencies and the military. An attack on critical infrastructure poses a serious risk to the stability of any government. The damage could be of different nature and include huge financial losses to the loss of human lives.
Sources told the news agency that the attacks appear to be funded by and ordered by Russia.
"A devastating Trojan Horse malware has infiltrated the software running on the nation's critical infrastructure and is poised to cause economic devastation," according to the Department of Homeland Security.
National Security sources told ABC News that there is evidence that the malware was introduced by hackers funded by the Russian government, and poses a serious threat,” ABCnews reports. Experts speculate that ICS SCADA systems have been infected, with the software in question controlling critical processes related to the operation of vital infrastructure, such as power transmission networks, wind turbines, nuclear plants, oil and gas plants.
US infrastructure and government agencies have been under constant attack, and it has intensified in recent times. A few weeks ago, the White House confirmed that it had suffered an attack on its computer network, which lasted for about two weeks. In this case, according to an anonymous White House official, the hackers penetrated an unclassified network. (The Obama administration has confirmed the incident). Many media outlets, such as “The Washington Post” cited sources saying that the attackers were connected to the Russian government. The worrying news is that the attacks were not detected in time by White House staff, but by an “ally”.
