Ukraine is asking United States FBI to help it investigate a suspected state-sponsored hack by the Russian military on Burisma, the Ukrainian energy company at the center of the impeachment of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Reports Ilya Zhegulev for Reuters in Kyiv:
California-based cybersecurity company Area 1 Security on Monday identified the hacking of Burisma and linked it to Russia’s Main Directorate of Military Intelligence, or GRU. The same hacking group, known as “Fancy Bear” or “APT28” by cybersecurity researchers, breached the Democratic National Committee in 2016 in what U.S. investigators described as part of an operation to disrupt that year’s election.
Russia’s defense ministry did not respond to a request for comment about Area 1 Security’s assertions. “It is noted that the hacking attack was probably committed by the Russian special services,” Ukrainian interior ministry official Artem Minyailo said at a briefing.
Minyailo said Ukraine had asked the FBI and Area 1 Security for assistance regarding information that hackers stole personal employee data and emails from executives at Burisma and other companies. These other companies included the media production company of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, he said.
Also on Thursday in Ukraine, the interior ministry announced an investigation into possible illegal surveillance of then U.S. ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, after this week's bombshell release of encrypted messages by U.S. Congress as part of the Trump impeachment case.
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• Ukraine asks FBI to help probe suspected Russian hack of Burisma
