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.
