Are Our Political Leaders Safe From Cyber Threats?

Russian cyber-attacks have been the dominant issue facing our government since the major attacks since the 2016 elections. The anonymous Russian group responsible for the attacks upon the Clinton foundation have returned and currently conducting attacks upon two conservative thinktanks. 

According to Microsoft, The Hudson Institute and the International Republican Institute are the two major thinktanks under assault; both organizations are republican sided and linked to an anti-Trump belief system. According to accounts from The New Yorker, the goal the International Republican Institute aims to create opportunities to spread democracy worldwide, and the Hudson Institute’s political agenda focuses upon eradicating the existence of kleptocracy in the world. Due to their known corrupt history of leadership, Russia remains the largest concern to the Hudson Institute. 

Leaders at Microsoft proclaim that the goals of these attacks remain unclear, but both organizations are large enough to cause a threat to Russian leadership through spreading their belief system, and therefore Russian operatives may attempt to seek information regarding our government through covert hacking sequences. A proactive federal judge took a stand by appointing Microsoft a “special master,” authorizing the company to seize artificial websites once they are published to the web in attempt to halt assaults upon thinktanks and government sites.

The New Yorker inquires that “Microsoft has grown increasingly aggressive to counter these attacks.” In attempt to enhance defense software, Microsoft releases “Account Guard” for the availability of political candidates and including all local, state, and federal operations. Currently, the fear of the Russian hackers meddling with the near future 2020 election is an imminent threat to security. As read from NPR, Eric Rosenbach, who leads the cybersecurity division from the white house, proclaims that “campaigns are the most vulnerable aspect of US elections because they often don’t have the time or money to develop long-term cybersecurity plans.” Though difficult to enforce, Microsoft and the senate plan on developing a two-way authentication; the difficulty in this simple plan refines in people willing to use this technique.

In this cyber net chase, the president of the International Republican Institute states his concerns upon the ongoing issue. “It is clearly designed to sow confusion, conflict and fear among those who criticize Mr. Putin’s authoritarian regime.” The way current campaign organizations are running, the fear of infiltration hinders campaign progress and secrecy. When one fake site is caught, the fear of a more prestigious hack already in the roots of national security runs rampant in the leaders of our democracy. The existence of a breach in our government’s online data may prove to be a probable issue. What continues to be discovered can lead to a more severe and complex issue.

The threat of anonymous Russian hackers afflicting with our government and political organizations could lead to drastic outcomes for the United States and upon future campaigns. But motions are currently being made by authorized Microsoft security software, and our nation may stand united and free from forthcoming threats from online predators. A united nation is needed to stand up against the bullies of Russia, and all sources stand firm on the belief that action is needed to defend our privacy and to climb to the top where the United States stood once before, superior in freedom.