Russian malware found on utility laptop

Burlington Electric in Vermont has 20K customers

WASHINGTON — Malicious software tied to Russian intelligence agencies has been found on a computer of a small electric utility in northern Vermont, raising concerns of Russian attempts to interfere with critical infrastructure, as well as the 2016 presidential race.

The laptop computer was not connected to the electric system and the malware did not disrupt electric grid operations or compromise customer data, according to the Burlington Electric Department and a U.S. law enforcement official.

The discovery came as the U.S. charges that Russia’s two largest intelligence agencies, known as the GRU and the FSB, conducted an aggressive campaign of cyberattacks that U.S. officials code-named Grizzly Steppe.

On Thursday, President Barack Obama ordered the expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats from Washington and San Francisco, closed two Russian luxury compounds in Maryland and New York, and slapped sanctions on the GRU and the FSB.

Burlington Electric, which has about 20,000 customers, said late Friday that it found the malware after the Department of Homeland Security issued an alert as part of the Obama administration’s actions.

The alert detailed technical aspects of the Grizzly Steppe attacks, which it said were aimed at “the U.S. election, as well as a range of U.S. government, political and private sector entities.”

Federal authorities shared the malware code with executives from 16 major sectors of the U.S. economy, including financial, utility and transportation industries, officials said.