The Democratic National Committee was warned about the possibility of hackers in their computer network several months before they attempted to address the issue, U.S. officials told CNN.
In April, consultants from a private security firm were brought in to investigate, and the hackers weren't removed from the network until June, about a year after they gained access, CNN reports. Thousands of stolen DNC documents were given to Wikileaks by an unidentified source, and several were published over the weekend, with officials expecting more data to be released soon. A source tells CNN the DNC was given warnings from the FBI and other agencies that were not very specific and the extent of the problem wasn't clear.
The hackers are suspected of working for Russian intelligence, and the DNC breach took place at around the same time as hackings at the State Department and White House. While looking into those breaches, analysts from the National Security Agency found clues that led them to suspect the DNC's network had also been infiltrated. The Republican National Committee does not appear to have been hacked, and the FBI has been in contact with the RNC to discuss their security measures.
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