Posted on August 24, 2018 at 3:10 PM
The DNC-Hack Culprits Uncovered
A recent hacking attack on the DNC (Democratic National Committee) voter database has left everyone concerned. However, as it turned out, the hack was not real and was instead just a test performed by the party’s security team.
The DNC hack was just a security test
This Wednesday, August 22, people were left in shock after the news of a cyber attack that supposedly hit the voter database belonging to DNC. However, according to a new announcement by Bob Lord, DNC chief security officer, the attack was not a real threat. Instead, the security decided to launch a simulation of an attack as a test.
The attack consisted of a third party trying to mimic an actual attack that would have a goal of reaching the voter file of DNC. Of course, the “attackers” did not actually collect any information, which was confirmed by Lord. He also stated that the attack was not authorized by any of the vendors, including the DNC itself.
One person who supposedly knew the details behind the attack stated that it was actually performed by the Michigan Democratic party. Not only that, but the source claims that the party failed to warn the DNC of the hack.
Lord continued to add that the DNC and their Democratic infrastructure are constantly under hacking attacks. While everyone is relieved that this was a test instead of being a real intrusion, Lord claims that the incident is just another proof that the danger is real and that everyone involved needs to be prepared for something like this at all times.
The thing about “false alarms” is that you don’t know that they’re false until you’ve showed up to investigate. All the folks who pulled together on this were amazing, and had this been a real attack, would have stopped something terrible. https://t.co/Y9zbX1VdrJ
— Mike Murray (@mmurray) August 23, 2018
The attackers created a fake login page in order to steal the login information from DNC voters, according to DNC’s own statement published on Wednesday. The page was actually discovered on Tuesday, and the DNC contacted the FBI right away, in fear of foreign adversaries being responsible for the attack.
However, as mentioned earlier, Lord stated that the page is now believed to be created by a third party as a test of what an actual phishing attack might look like, and what it might achieve if it were to actually happen. The fear of the real attack is believed by many to be completely justified, especially after the hacks of 2015 and 2016. Those are believed to be performed by the Russian government, with the US intelligence agencies claiming that the goal was to try and help Donald Trump win the elections.
Security cannot be taken lightly again
Michigan Democratic Party’s chairman, Brandon Dillon, stated that the attack was a step towards improving the security. He believes that this had to be done, especially since the Trump Administration is not doing much to eliminate foreign interference in the US elections.
Dillon continued by admitting that the test has raised a lot of noise, but at least it proved that the security held on, and the proper alarms did go off, instead of the hackers gaining unlimited access without anyone knowing about it.
After the hack in 2016, the DNC was heavily criticized for not taking better precautions, which is why they did not take any chances this time. Additionally, the leaders of intelligence agencies in the US have all been expecting another interference from Russia and other foreign forces, which is why they were more than ready to quickly respond.
