Three other fake sites were crafted to appear as though they were affiliated with the Senate, and one nonpolitical site spoofed Microsoft’s own online products. Microsoft said Monday that it had found no evidence that the fake sites it recently discovered were used in attacks, but fake sites can carry malware that automatically loads onto the computers of unsuspecting visitors. APT28, a unit under the Russian military intelligence agency GRU, specializes in information warfare or hacking and disinformation operations. Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III in July indicted 12 Russian intelligence officers, accusing them of hacking the Democratic National Committee, also in 2016. Microsoft did not explicitly blame the Russian intelligence agency for the attack announced Monday but it did cite Russia’s government and named APT28 and its pseudonyms, Strontium and Fancy Bear.

Source: Washington Post August 21, 2018 04:02 UTC