U.S. suspects Iranians created website threatening U.S. election officials

[webfact]

U.S. suspects Iranians created website threatening U.S. election officials

By Mark Hosenball

 

FILE PHOTO: FBI Director Christopher Wray speaks during a press conference to announce that two alleged Islamic State militants known as the 'Beatles' will arrive in the United States to face trial on U.S. charges for their alleged involvement in beheadings of Western hostages, at the Justice Department in Washington, U.S., October 7, 2020. Jim Watson/Pool via REUTERS

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. security agencies said on Wednesday they had highly credible information indicating that Iranian cyber actors were responsible for creating a website earlier this month featuring death threats aimed at U.S. election officials.

 

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Homeland Security Department's Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency said in a statement that the Enemies of the People website, which surfaced after the U.S. election but now appears dormant, demonstrated "an ongoing Iranian intent to create divisions and mistrust in the United States and undermine public confidence in the U.S. electoral process."

 

The agencies said they had previously warned that "Iranian cyber actors" likely were keen to influence and interfere with the 2020 U.S. election.

 

"Iran is not involved in inciting violence and creating unrest in the United States," Alireza Miryousefi, a spokesman for Iran's UN mission, said in an email to Reuters.

 

"Iran itself is the largest victim of cyber attacks, including Stuxnet, and has always emphasized the need for the establishment of a global mechanism to prevent cyber attacks at the United Nations, and at other international institutions."

 

The alleged Iranian-created website accused U.S. officials involved in election security of "treason."

 

The site, along with several associated social media accounts, included photographs of Republican and Democratic officials, with rifle crosshairs superimposed on them. It also included officials' purported home addresses.

 

Those targeted by the website included FBI director Christopher Wray and Christopher Krebs, the former CISA director who was fired by President Donald Trump after publicly vouching for 2020 election results showing Joe Biden defeated Trump.

 

The site also targeted several employees of Dominion Voting Systems, a voting-machine vendor that has been the subject of unsubstantiated conspiracy theories of vote manipulation.

 

A Dominion spokeswoman said those false claims have resulted in dangerous threats to the company and its workers.

 

Internet records hid the identity of whoever set up the site. Cybersecurity researchers said one of the pages was hosted in Russia, and some records include accounts registered through Yandex, a Russian email platform. But experts said such links did not prove any Russian government connection to the website.

 

(Reporting by Mark Hosenball; Editing by Howard Goller and Stephen Coates)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-12-24

 

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Something tells me that Trump won't be deflecting suspicion to the Chinese in this case.

[JulesMad]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

two alleged Islamic State militants known as the 'Beatles'

The Beatles were 4 English militants, not just 2... It is completely believable though that usa/trump already 'lost' the other 2  ????

[candide]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

the Enemies of the People website, which surfaced after the U.S. election but now appears dormant, demonstrated "an ongoing Iranian intent to create divisions and mistrust in the United States and undermine public confidence in the U.S. electoral process."

Iran has been wasting money! Trump has been able to do it quite well by himself! ????

Edited December 24, 2020 by candide

[mrfill]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

"an ongoing ----- intent to create divisions and mistrust in the United States and undermine public confidence in the U.S. electoral process."

The Iranians are being accused of this? They've clearly not been reading the papers as the quoted statement (less one word) perfectly describes the incumbent over the last several months. Several court cases have tried, but failed, to undermine public confidence in the voting system although I do not believe these cases were brought by Iranians.

[ChouDoufu]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Cybersecurity researchers said one of the pages was hosted in Russia, and some records include accounts registered through Yandex, a Russian email platform.

 

well, okay then.  appears the "real" culprits are whomever we fancy bombing this week.

[Tug]

Wouldent surprise me one bit if they did ,what’s disgraceful is the Americans that followed their lead and the potus ........(po*)........that egged them on Their in lies the damage imo

Edited December 24, 2020 by Tug