Russian hackers breached a Vermont electrical utility, The Washington Post reported on Friday. Investigators found malicious code associated with the hackers during an analysis of Russia's cyberattacks against Democratic Party organizations.
That code was apparently discovered on a laptop at the Burlington Electric Department in Vermont, the Burlington Free Press wrote on Friday. The code was apparently not used to disrupt operations at the Vermont utility, and officials there said the laptop in question is not associated with the operation of the electrical grid.
"The grid is not in danger," Vermont Public Service Commissioner Christopher Recchia told the Burlington Free Press. "The utility flagged it, saw it, notified appropriate parties and isolated that one laptop with that malware on it." Officials interviewed by The Post said it is not clear how hackers may have intended to execute the malware, if at all.
One of the biggest threats with breaches of utility sites is the potential to disrupt the US electrical grid en masse. Such an attack could have a devastating effect on emergency services nationwide.
A senior Obama administration official told The Post the malicious code was shared with utilities throughout the country. People at the Vermont utility identified the code within their system, the newspaper said.
Russia is at the center of a US federal investigation into widespread hacking that targeted organizations associated with the Democratic Party during the presidential election.
Russia has denied any involvement. President Barack Obama on Thursday announced new sanctions against the Kremlin as a result — which included the expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats from the US.
