CNN: Hackers from Russia stand behind the hacking of the White House network

Russian hackers hacked into the computer system of the US State Department, and then gained access to confidential information from the White House, according to CNN, citing its sources in the US government.

The Kremlin took this message with irony. “As for the sources at CNN, I don’t know what those sources are. We know that this has already become a sport - blaming Russia for everything. But, the main thing is that they don’t look for Russian submarines in the Potomac River, as has already happened in some countries,” said press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov.

The White House argues that it is only about hacking confidential documents that are not secret. For example, hackers allegedly managed to gain access to the work schedule of the US president. Such information is not considered secret, but it is highly valued among foreign intelligence agencies, a source told CNN.

In October, the White House reported on the discovery of suspicious activity in an unclassified network used by employees of the presidential staff. The system was shut down several times to install the necessary protection.

Investigation of hacking, which is called one of the most well-planned cyber attacks on a US government agency, involved the FBI, the Secret Service and the intelligence services of the United States. Hacking, according to CNN, was done from computers located around the world. Investigators say they managed to find characteristic codes that, in their opinion, indicate that hackers work for the Russian authorities, told CNN.

Secret and Unclassified Information

A spokesman for the National Security Council, Mark Straw, did not confirm the hacking of the network by Russian hackers, but noted that his department was approaching such actions very seriously.

“In this case [the October hack], as we have previously reported, we immediately did everything necessary to assess and eliminate the [illegal] activity. As was the case before, we do not intend to comment on who carried out this,” he added.

Neither the US State Department nor the Russian Embassy in Washington comment on this CNN story.

Ben Rhodes, deputy national security adviser for the White House, said that the presidential administration uses different computer networks: with secret and unclassified information.

"We don't think anyone was able to gain access to our sensitive systems," Rhodes told CNN.

According to investigators, to get into the computer system of the White House, hackers first hacked into the State Department’s computer network. According to one of the organization’s employees, hackers have been in the system for several months, and there are no guarantees that access has been completely blocked.

The investigation believes that hackers gained access to the State Department through phishing (when attackers trick users into a password by sending letters asking them to open a website that is fake and enter their data) launched from one of the agency’s e-mail addresses.

In January, Barack Obama announced new steps to strengthen cybersecurity in the United States.

According to the American president, the new measures will provide law enforcement agencies with more opportunities to prosecute cybercriminals, for example, by freezing their financial assets.