The Pentagon Has Prepared a Cyberattack Against Russia

U.S. military hackers have been given the go-ahead to gain access to Russian cybersystems as part of potential retaliation for any meddling in America’s elections.

By Zachary Fryer-Biggs, Center for Public Integrity

The U.S. intelligence community and the Pentagon have quietly agreed on the outlines of an offensive cyberattack that the United States would unleash if Russia electronically interferes with the 2018 midterm election on Nov. 6, according to current and former senior U.S. officials who are familiar with the plan.

In preparation for its potential use, U.S. military hackers have been given the go-ahead to gain access to Russian cybersystems that they feel is needed to let the plan unfold quickly, the officials said.

The effort constitutes one of the first major cyberbattle plans organized under a new government policy enabling potential offensive operations to proceed more quickly once the parameters have been worked out in advance and agreed among key agencies.

While U.S. national-security officials have so far reported only intermittent efforts by Russian sources to compromise political organizations and campaigns, they have been worried—in the aftermath of Russia’s digital contact with U.S. election systems in 2016—that Moscow might unleash more aggressive interference in the hours before voting begins, while the polls are open, or when the votes are being tabulated.

The existence of such a plan means that America is more fully integrating offensive cyberattacks into its overall military planning systems, a move likely to make cybercombat more likely and eventually more commonplace, sometimes without first gaining specific presidential approval. Cyberattacks are now on a more obvious path, in short, to becoming a regular currency of warfare.

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Source: The Daily Beast