Russian hackers on behalf of the State Department hacked a British government program
Russian hackers posing as a U.S. State Department employee have misled a researcher at the Chatham House Institute of International Affairs in Britain and gained access to a protected government program called "Russia and Eurasia." This is a new tactic by cybercriminals, Reuters reports .
The incident happened last month.
According to the agency, hackers, acting on behalf of a State Department employee named Claude Weber, invited senior advisor to Chatham House's Russia and Eurasia Program, Keir Giles, to a meeting that allegedly required access to her credentials.
The correspondence lasted almost two weeks, during which Giles had no suspicions about Weber's identity.
Although the alleged State Department employee used a Gmail address, she spoke in idiomatic English and copied her alleged work address and that of colleagues who were also allegedly involved in the "meeting" throughout the conversation. She also attached professionally prepared materials to the emails.
Giles eventually provided Weber with a password for a separate app, which can be used to allow third-party apps to access email accounts, but can also be used to bypass password protection.
It is not clear when and under what circumstances the hack became known. Google said that the hack was carried out by Russian hackers.
Reuters was unable to contact Weber, whose email address is now inactive, or find any trace of her or other alleged State Department officials mentioned in the correspondence.
- On May 21, the United Kingdom, along with 10 allied countries, issued a warning about a Russian military intelligence cyber campaign targeting organizations involved in providing foreign aid to Ukraine.