Microsoft used a US court order to disable seven internet domains that a hacking group linked with Russian intelligence was using to try to infiltrate Ukrainian media organizations, in a likely effort to support Russia’s war, Microsoft said Thursday. It was not immediately clear how successful the hacking attempts were. It’s the second time this week that a powerful US corporation or government agency has disclosed the use of a court order to target hackers accused of working for Russia’s military intelligence directorate, GRU. The moves reflect US officials’ ongoing concerns about potential Russian retaliatory cyberattacks against US targets, and a more aggressive strategy to try to thwart state-backed hacking operations. The Justice Department revealed Wednesday that it had used a court order to disrupt a network of thousands of hacked computers controlled by another GRU-linked hacking group that could have been used in a cyberattack.

Source: CNN April 08, 2022 23:02 UTC