U. S. INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES SA Y RUSS IA LIKELY BEHIND HACKS

The office of the U. S. Director of National Intelligence on Tuesday said Russia was “likely” behind a string of hacks identified last month that it said breached fewer than 10 federal agencies. The office and the FBI, the National Security Agency, and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency inside the Department of Homeland Security, in a joint statement, said the hackers’ goal appeared to be collecting intelligence, rather than any destructive acts. The agencies said that the actor, “likely Russian in origin, is responsible for most or all of the recently discovered, ongoing cyber compromises of both government and non- governmental networks.” The investigation is continuing, they said, and could turn up additional government victims. It was the first formal statement of attribution made by the Trump administration. Elected officials briefed on the inquiry had previously said Russia was behind the hacking spree, but President Donald Trump had muddied the waters by saying it could have been perpetrated by China.