U.S. officials reportedly warned DNC of hack months before they did something about it

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 25 July 2016

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.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox