Dutch intelligence warned US about Russia’s plan to hack 2016 elections, reports say

Dutch intelligence officials reportedly hacked a group of Russian state-linked cyber crooks more than a year before they cracked the Democratic National Committee in 2016 – and warned US intelligence about their intentions.

During the US presidential election, it is believed that Russian hackers compromised the Democratic Party’s IT infrastructure and were able to get hold of damning emails. It has been suggested that the release of these emails influenced the election results.

However, before this incident happened, officials from a Dutch intelligence agency had intercepted the hacking group and warned American officials about the threat.

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According to Australian newspaper The Age, cyber espionage specialists from Dutch intelligence agency AIVD identified the Russia-based hacking group referred to as APT29 (also known as ‘Cozy Bear’) in 2014.

The group is noted for launching attacks on the White House and State Department.

The agency hacked into the group’s systems and was able to pinpoint their location to a university in Red Square, Moscow.

Not only were agency workers able to do this, but they were also able to tap into and control the security cameras in the hacking group’s offices, enabling them to see who came in and out of the building.

 

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