Russian hackers likely targeted more than 21 states during the 2016 election, according to testimony from Department of Homeland Security official Jeanette Manfra before the Senate Homeland Security Committee Tuesday.
Manfra ... acknowledged that the department only had enough “visibility” to confirm activity targeting 21 states because of sensors in place in the state systems and information provided by the intelligence community.
“I think we can assume that the majority of the states were probably a target,” Manfra said during a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing in response to questioning from ranking member Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.).
But Manfra pushed back on McCaskill’s assertion that states where activity was not detected were likely more vulnerable to Russian hackers because they didn't have tools in place to detect breach attempts. Manfra noted that most of the activity Homeland Security analyzed involved hackers scanning for vulnerabilities, rather than trying to break into systems.
Manfra stressed that only a small number of state systems were actually breached.
“I think the American people have been misled here,” McCaskill fumed. “It’s likely that all 50 states were likely affected.”
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After detecting the Russian activity in 2016, Homeland Security opened election infrastructure up to voluntary federal protections. Manfra said Tuesday that 17 states had requested rigorous, on-site vulnerability assessments of their systems to shore up security ahead of future elections.
On Tuesday, during a hearing of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Sen. Margaret Hassan, D-N.H., noted to Manfra that six states have already held primaries for the 2018 season and dozens more primaries will be held in the coming weeks.
"Has DHS detected any cyber activity targeting election infrastructure by Russia or any other actors during this election season?" Hassan asked Manfra.
"We have not at this time," Manfra responded.
Manfra was not asked whether the U.S. intelligence community has detected any of the other measures that Russia deployed during the 2016 presidential election, particularly the use of social media like Facebook to spread false information and inflame tensions across the United States.
Bloomberg Politics reports several states are turning to the National Guard to help protect against cyber attacks
West Virginia’s top election official, Republican Secretary of State Mac Warner, has embedded a member of the Air National Guard in his office to scour election networks daily. Short on funds and expertise, a number of Warner’s counterparts across the country are also tapping the Guard to bolster their cybersecurity before November’s midterms.
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Best known for responding to hurricanes and tornadoes with “weekend warriors,” the Guard has been building its cyber-defense expertise, in part with volunteers whose regular jobs involve advanced technology. By next year, it aims to have cyber units in 38 states, with some 3,800 soldiers and airmen ...
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Potential Russian interference in U.S. elections is a “form of information warfare,” Warner says. “You got to think outside the box and fight technology with technology.”
Andrei Krutskikh, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s information security special representative, said Monday that his country can’t give unilateral guarantees that it won’t interfere in U.S. elections in response to ultimatums.
“We won’t make any unilateral statements and give assurances and, even more so, we won’t admit guilt for some incidents in which Russia is allegedly involved,” Krutskikh told Kommersant in an interview.
Other states using the National Guard in some election protection capacity include Colorado, Rhode Island, Ohio, Oregon, Wisconsin, Washington, and South Carolina.
Russia likely targeted more than 21 states before 2016 election: official (The Hill)
Russia likely targeted all 50 states in 2016, but has yet to try again, DHS cyber chief says (ABC News)
Russians Want to Hack Your Election? Call Out the National Guard (Bloomberg Politics)