Russia linked to cyber espionage across Asia, Europe, US
The country allegedly hacked into corporate networks around the world to try to gain an upperhand in the economic sphere.
Russia actively engaged in cyber espionage in 2013, a new report from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike has revealed.
Last year, Russia's intelligence forces hacked into corporate networks around the world -- including those in the US, Asia, and Europe -- to peek into what the firms were working on, according to CyberStrike. The Russian hackers allegedly stole intellectual property from firms in the energy and technology industries, CrowdStrike reported.
Russia now joins a growing number of countries hacking into other networks on foreign soil. It's been well-documented that both the US and China are allegedly hacking networks, though in some cases, those activities have been for political gain. It's believed that Russia's alleged hacking was based solely in economic exploits.
Speaking to Reuters in an interview on Wednesday, CrowdStrike Chief Technology Officer Dmitri Alperovitch said that his company has been tracing the activities of a Russia-based hacking group it's calling the "Energetic Bear." Based on that research, CrowdStrike purports Energetic Bear is working on behalf of the Russian government to steal corporate secrets.
The Russian revelation is part of a broader report from CrowdStrike on 2013 global threats. The company found that cyber attacks also originated last year from China, Syria, Iran, and North Korea.