Germany's foreign intelligence chief is warning of cyberattacks aimed at political destabilization as the country prepares for an election next year, and says evidence suggests Russian involvement in hacking during the U.S. campaign.
Bruno Kahl, who leads the Federal Intelligence Service, told Tuesday's edition of the daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung that his agency knows of "cyberattacks that have no other point than causing political insecurity." He said that "Europe is in the focus of this attempted disruption, and Germany in particular."
U.S. authorities have concluded Russia was responsible for hacking Democratic National Committee emails, which Russia denies. Kahl said he has "indications it comes from those quarters."
He said it's technically difficult to assign blame to any "state actor"—but that "some things speak for it being at least tolerated or wished for on the part of the state."
"The perpetrators have an interest in delegitimizing the democratic process as such—whomever that later helps," Kahl was quoted as saying. "I have the impression that the outcome of the American election isn't causing mourning in Russia so far."
Traces left on the internet suggest that those responsible wanted to demonstrate what they can do, "and not just in the U.S. elections," he said.
tl;dr: Something bad might happen; Give us more money.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by HiThere on Thursday December 01 2016, @07:51PM
I note you posted anonymously, and that so have several others. And I don't see anything peculiar or difficult to support in the claims listed in the summary, so your response seems scripted...though by what I'm not sure. The one that suggested that the head of a German Intelligence Agency was "a butthurt Hillary supporter" is so absurd that I find words failing me. Calling him a Merkel supporter would at least have plausibility. But as it is it sounds as if it was either posted by a troll, an astroturfer following a script, or someone with a room temperature IQ...and there's not a heater in this room.
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.