Microsoft says it has found another Russian operation targeting prominent think tanks

[Eugene]

Source: Washington Post

By Elizabeth Dwoskin and Craig Timberg February 19 at 11:11 PM

SAN FRANCISCO -- For the second time in six months, Microsoft has identified a Russian government-affiliated operation targeting prominent think tanks that have been critical of Russia, the company said in a blog post Tuesday evening.

The “spear-phishing” attacks -- in which hackers send out phony emails intended to trick people into visiting websites that look authentic but in fact enable them to infiltrate their victims’ corporate computer systems -- were tied to the APT28 hacking group, a unit of Russian military intelligence that meddled in the 2016 U.S. election. The group targeted more than 100 European employees of the German Marshall Fund, the Aspen Institute Germany, and the German Council on Foreign Relations, influential groups that focus on transatlantic policy issues.

The attacks, which took place during the last three months of 2018, come ahead of European parliamentary elections in May. They highlight a continuously aggressive campaign by Russian operatives to undermine democratic institutions in countries it sees as adversaries.

The announcement is also the second time in the last six months that Microsoft has gone public with its efforts to thwart APT28, which is sometimes called Strontium or Fancy Bear.

-snip-


Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/02/20/microsoft-says-it-has-found-another-russian-operation-targeting-prominent-think-tanks/

[Wellstone ruled]

1. Not surprising one bit.

The Techies have been screaming about this for sometime,saying the Russians have never left.

[pecosbob]

2. Perhaps it's time the NSA takes the gloves off...

[C Moon]

3. I have a feeling one of my neighbors is involved in something like this...

he supposedly from Russia and makes a living with Uber; but he always has brand new expensive cars and lots of computer equipment. Talking to him, he's a nice guy, though. But there is something odd going on. A lot of visitors, too.
I know I sound paranoid, but oh well.

[iluvtennis]

4. It pays to be a little paranoid cuz it could be the case. Recall the FBI Peter Strock that Trump

had fired was a top agent in taking down a group of Russian spies who set up shop as family.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Strzok
A career employee with the FBI for 22 years before his firing in August 2018,[27] Strzok had been a lead agent in the FBI's "Operation Ghost Stories" against Andrey Bezrukov and Yelena Vavilova, a Russian spy couple who were part of the Illegals Program, a network of Russian sleeper agents who were arrested in 2010.[28] By July 2015, Strzok was serving as the section chief of the Counterespionage Section, a subordinate section of the FBI's Counterintelligence Division.[4]

[Beakybird]

6. You should call the FBI because he might already be on their radar.

[C Moon]

7. My wife kind of thought "eh" when I told her what I thought was going on.

But one evening, we were walking past the mailboxes and he opened his mailbox grabbing a couple dozen huge red envelopes. My wife said, "Wow! That's a lot of envelopes!"
He gave a nervous smile and mumbled something to change the subject.

After that, my wife wasn't so reluctant to believe my theory.

It started for me when I heard someone say one of the neighbors were complaining that he believed the Russian guy was hacking into his internet services. One night a big argument ensued, and the Russian guy called the police because he feared violence.

Before I call the FBI, I'd like to look into it more. Ask around. As I said, he's a very nice person. And the fact that he called the police, kind of makes it seems I'm off base.

[Fuzzpope]

8. A couple of things to consider.

Based on your last paragraph:

Before I call the FBI, I'd like to look into it more. Ask around. As I said, he's a very nice person. And the fact that he called the police, kind of makes it seems I'm off base.

1 - looking into it, and not being a qualified investigator, you may not know what to look for, and can easily overlook something significant, or even observe it, and not recognize it's importance. Also, if the neighbor is an active Russian intelligence asset, poking around is a great way to fall into real trouble, because:

Despite his claim to fear violence, and assuming that he IS what you suspect, I promise you that violence is not something he'd shy away from if the matter was forced. A better answer is he feigns fear of violence to conceal his fears of discovery, and his premesis being entered/searched. Of course such a person would be nice, key to his mission would be disarming everyone around him.

Lastly, his calling the police does nothing to prove he is not a field asset, he's merely getting ahead of what could be a threatening situation for him, and using the police to push that threat further back. It's also a great tactic to alleviate suspicion, as your own words suggest.

Fact: we were heavily infiltrated in the runnup to the 2016 election. We have no idea how many in-country operatives there actually were, but they *were* here, and we're deeply involved in local politics and action groups.

I am not suggesting that your neighbor is a spy. But what I am suggesting, based on the concerns you point out, is that you consider the situation as carefully and thoroughly as possible. If you have a nagging doubt about the true nature of your neighbor, contacting the proper authority (the FBI in this case) and obtaining their feedback cannot hurt things, and may help you dismiss any remaining worries you might have.

You'd also become a hero if it ends up being true and a Russian geek gets popped, just think of the street cred you'd end up with here, lol.

Lastly, never ignore your intuition. It's there for your continued survival.

[C Moon]

9. :D Now you're scarying me. Great advice, Fuzz. Thanks. I'll at least start poking around online.

[okaawhatever]

13. LOL That may be worse. You're giving him home field advantage. Of course he could be doing

something illegal that has nothing to do with espionage and/or election interference. Remember the nice Russian family they just caught in Raleigh?

A wealthy Russian man who has been the focus of media attention since the FBI raided his mansion earlier this month used a downtown Raleigh condominium as a “safe house” for guns, ammunition and cash, according to federal court testimony.


Read more here: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article223247740.html#storylink=cpy

All of those envelopes could be some kind of financial scam. There was one reported recently where people were calling mortgage holders who were under repayment plans to change the mailing address of the attorneys office that they sent their payments to, and then cashing the checks when they were sent in.

[Sapient Donkey]

15. Anything more than lots of computer equipment and a fancy car?

I have room full of fancy computer equipment that I use for my lab and some other things. At least it looks really fancy and was really expensive at one point, but used enterprise equipment often drops in value quickly after five or so years. He also might get his fancy new cars from uber and is actually being screwed over by them with some awful lease terms.

As for the visitors, that might point to some other illegal activities (or not), but I would think shady hacker types would avoid having lots of visitors. Just drop a tempting CD near his door or car that has some stuff on it to give you a backdoor to his network. I'm kidding....use a USB stick.

[C Moon]

16. Yeah. I feel kind of stupid bringing it up. He's probably a good guy. Like I said,

he's been nice to me.

[dalton99a]

5. Kick

[Achilleaze]

10. The republicans have some super skanky, anti-American "friends"

Deplorable.

[UpInArms]

11. Back up to the top for exposure

[Blue_Tires]

12. Greenwald and Snowden were unavailable for comment

[okaawhatever]

14. LOL Good one. nt