Photo: JACK GUEZ / AFP / Getty Images
Russian hackers launched a cyber attack that caused several US government websites to be taken offline.
It is believed that the pro-Kremlin group Killnet targeted websites in Colorado, Kentucky and Mississippi, causing nationwide outages on Wednesday.
The websites that were affected contained information on how Americans can register to vote before the midterm elections.
It was reported that the website of the Kentucky Board of Elections went offline, according to CNN. It is not known if it was deliberately targeted by hackers.
Websites in Kentucky and Mississippi were back online Wednesday afternoon .
However, the Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology said the website was down “due to a claimed cyberattack by an anonymous foreign actor.”
Since then, the hacking group claims to have “impacted” a login network used by thousands Department of Defense websites.
Comes just days after Killnet shared plans online that revealed the cell intended to of targeting US institutions, according to The Mirror.
Hackers have shared anti-NATO and anti-Western content on Telegram.
But, FBI officials have said it is “unlikely” that cu any attempted hacking will cause a widespread outage.
The researchers added: “Any attempts tracked by the FBI and CISA (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency) remained localized and were successfully blocked or mitigated with minimal or no disruption to electoral processes”.
But they warned that foreign actors may “seek to spread or amplify false or exaggerated claims” regarding possible violations of the electoral infrastructure.
Killnet has been behind attacks on institutions in several countries following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, including Estonia, Norway, Italy, and Lithuania.
The expert Stefan Soesanto, from the Center for Security Studies ETH Zurich, told Politico in September: “Many in Russia see them (a Killnet ) as a hero.
“Killnet’s goal is to make Europeans pay for their unequivocal support for Ukraine and to punish Western governments for their anti-Russian sentiment.”
The attack on US government websites came just days after Ukrainian intelligence sources warned that Moscow is reportedly planning massive cyberattacks against the country and its allies.
Fears persist that Moscow may launch an attack amid Western-imposed sanctions.
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