Investigation into Russian Hacking of DNC

Posted by jack

(This began as a vendetta against Hillary long before Trump was a contender and it morphed into an expose’ of corrupt American politics. Once the hacking was discovered it took many months for the FBI and DNC to connect and take the incident seriously. So, for 9 full months a comedy of errors allowed the hackers to roam freely within the DNC computers.)

WASHINGTON — When Special Agent Adrian Hawkins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation called the Democratic National Committee in September 2015 to pass along some troubling news about its computer network, he was transferred, naturally, to the help desk.

His message was brief, if alarming. At least one computer system belonging to the D.N.C. had been compromised by hackers federal investigators had named “the Dukes,” a cyberespionage team linked to the Russian government.

The F.B.I. knew it well: The bureau had spent the last few years trying to kick the Dukes out of the unclassified email systems of the White House, the State Department and even the Joint Chiefs of Staff, one of the government’s best-protected networks.

Yared Tamene, the tech-support contractor at the D.N.C. who fielded the call, was no expert in cyberattacks. His first moves were to check Google for “the Dukes” and conduct a cursory search of the D.N.C. computer system logs to look for hints of such a cyberintrusion. By his own account, he did not look too hard even after Special Agent Hawkins called back repeatedly over the next several weeks — in part because he wasn’t certain the caller was a real F.B.I. agent and not an impostor.

Click here for more of this story.

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41 Responses to Investigation into Russian Hacking of DNC

  1. Libby says:

    Maybe it’s a good thing:

    “Over the weekend, four prominent senators — two Republicans and two Democrats — joined forces to pledge an investigation while pointedly ignoring Mr. Trump’s skeptical claims.”

    It’s gotten a decidedly quiescent branch of our government up off it’s larded behind.

    • Pie guevara says:

      Obama is a little late, don’t you think Lippy The Larded? This is his purview, where has he been for 8 years of cyber attacks, eh? Ooops, I forgot, he is your man who can do no wrong and to whom you turn a blind eye. He has been Putin’s obedient dog if not merely ineffective and inept.

      • Tina says:

        Excellent points Pie!

        And let us not forget that Obama could hardly grouse over Russian interference into our election when he overtly worked to influence the Israeli election to defeat Netanyahu:

        The Obama presidential election team has set up camp in Tel Aviv with the mission to defeat Netanyahu in our upcoming election.

        The “Anyone but Bibi” mission is headed by Jeremy Bird, Obama’s National Field Director in his successful presidential campaigns.

        Under Bird, a group called “Victory 15” has been set up. It has recruited the young activists from Israel’s 2013 social protest movement and will man a massive social network and personal contact campaign to defeat Bibi. V15 is financed by an NGO called “One Voice” whose motto is to be “the voice of mainstream Israelis and Palestinians.” Research finds that One Voice is funded by John Kerry’s State Department. … One Voice was formed in 2003, its inaugural board of advisers included Gary Gladstein who used to be the chief operations officer of Soros Fund Management. As in George Soros.

        Watch for more of this (here at home) by the so-called non-political non-profit(s) of the radical Soros left!

  2. Peggy says:

    From TruthFeed

    DID YOU KNOW? Trump Won 2,626 Counties. Hillary Only Won 487:

    “Are you growing tired of liberals crying over the so-called popular vote, as if Hillary Clinton is some beloved disenfranchised leader?

    According to the Associated Press, Clinton won 487 counties nationwide, compared with 2,626 for President-elect Donald Trump.

    There are rules to the contest, and Trump won fair and square. The rest is just noise and sore loser whining.

    Aside from her popularity in the ultra-liberal strongholds California and New York, the final election breakdown of the numbers shows what an ass-kickin’ Hillary received from the American people.”

    http://truthfeed.com/did-you-know-trump-won-2626-counties-hillary-won-487/38971/

    • Libby says:

      Yes, but the 2626 counties didn’t have any people in them. This is the problem.

      (Good try, though. You just keep trying, and maybe those two-million-six Hils votes will just evaporate.)

      In fact, we’re getting right cranky about the undue influence of these unpopulated places in our federal legislature and elsewhere. Did you know that the entire state of Indiana, which our Vice-President Elect gets such kudos for running effectively … has two million fewer people in it than the San Francisco Bay Area? Puts his accomplishment in a different perspective, don’t it?

      • Tina says:

        The hills’ votes represent small areas in only a few of the various states. We are a republic, not a democracy, just so those highly populated areas of the country can’t ride roughshod over the rest of the country!

        The Bay Area does not represent the will of the people in other parts of the country and that’s the point.

        Your thinking is reminiscent of the thinking in the south when blacks were unworthy of consideration!

        No, it doesn’t put his accomplishment in a different perspective.

        And when you consider that you lefties put so much stock in a bumpkin that hailed from Arkansas, a state with a population that’s also more than half (by a million) of the size of the Bay Area you once again have no ground on which to stand.

        • Libby says:

          “The hills’ votes represent small areas in only a few of the various states.”

          Yes, where all the people live. What ever happened to one person, one vote?

          I know we’re all admiring Hamilton’s prescience, but the ugly fact is that the electoral college was instituted so that southern states, where very few people could vote, could still impact an election. It’s time to face that nasty bit of history down and abolish the institution.

          • Tina says:

            One person one vote, democracy, was rejected by our founders because it leads to tyranny. They had lived in tyranny under the king and wanted no part of it. They gave us a republic.

            It is not time to abolish the electoral college. The diversity present in the various states demands that we keep it.

            Those of us who live in Northern California and sections of central and southern California would prefer an electoral system that better reflects our diversity. We are experiencing the tyranny of the high population areas and know first hand what it’s like. In terms of the federal election, California is a winner take all state so Hillary got all 55 electoral votes even though 4.3 million of us voted against her. (5.5 million voted for her)

      • Peggy says:

        So Libs, what you’re saying is those who live in SF are the only ones who really matter and those who live in every state across the US don’t.

        You do know we are a Constitutional Republic and NOT a democracy where the masses rule and the rights of others don’t count? The French revolution failed because they wanted the system you are promoting. And so will the US if you progressive democrats ever get your way.

        So get as “cranky” as you want. Those of us who want a free society with liberties and freedom for everyone instead of a few who can eat all of the cake they want will fight you to submission.

        To paraphrase Obama, We won, you lost. Get over it.”

      • Dewster says:

        Libby Talk to the People of Indiana Pence could not get elected again. He has a very bad reputation in IN.

        They hate him with a Vengeance.

        Pence is a Crazy Religious extremist. This new Admin is going to be one of the stupidest in history. Low IQ’s. Hate Science and real facts. Quite Frankly they are all there to make money.

        The Swamp has more Wall Street and corrupt profiteers than we would have gotten with Bush or Clinton.

        Mark My words. Tea Party People are going to have to defend Fascism in the next few weeks and it is going to be a hoot pointing out their hypocrisy and hatred of Democracy.

        • Tina says:

          You don;t know that Dewey. His polling is very much like polling for others…our nation is divided. The 30% that deeply disapprove are countered by 30% that do approve.

          The thing to note is that all across the nation since Obama was elected and began shoving extreme positions down our throats Democrats have lost over 1000 seats. You are not the popular kids you imagine yourselves to be. Your notions that disagreement on issues equals hatred and bigotry are offensive, intolerant and wrong.

          “Crazy Religious extremist”

          But you’re not a bigoted ass!

          And fascism? You do not know what fascism is but you will be out in the streets screaming fascism as if it had significance.

  3. Chesterfield says:

    Jack, how are the classes going?

    You really showed them in econ today!

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlVDGmjz7eM

  4. Harold says:

    My opinion is Obama and the DNC are planning on handing Trump a major international problem with Russia on January 20th,

    (Obamas own deadline as he has said)

    All in a poorly veiled attempt to slow down Trumps first 100 days of removing and or reducing Obamas mighty penmanship to that of a blank piece of political rubbish.

    Once more showing that their political stronghold is more important than any of Americas well being.

  5. Dewster says:

    LOL The USA does the Same. The FBI and CIA are both corrupt and on 2 different sides.

    Funny cheating by Americans is OK.

    When USA interferes in foreign elections it is OK.

    This is CIA Media Propaganda to ring the war drums.

    If they were worried about the hacks they have acted already and it takes time.

    They know everything about the hacks. Remember Clinton brought it up in Debates both Clinton and Trump knew.

    The elections were affected more by cheating of the GOP and DNC then hacks.

    The emails came from inside leaks.

    Media as always ring the war drums.

    Remember I told you about the wild letter written by election attorney? It said one side colluded with putin other wanted to overthrow him. Sounded crazy back then, Now it is all real.

    We need to address election fraud

    DNC Primary and GOP Crosscheck

    Watch media carefully and vet it all Liberal or conservative

    China has seized an unmanned US Navy vessel in the international waters of the South China Sea, Reuters

  6. No Longer Deplorable J Soden says:

    Once again, former Demwit Pat Caddell hits the nail squarely!
    http://www.breitbart.com/radio/2016/12/16/caddell-fake-news-issue-part-media-outrage-peasants-revolted/

    And the idea that Snoopes or PolitiFantasy is now going to be the arbiter of “news” on FakeBook is truly laughable!
    http://www.breitbart.com/big-journalism/2016/12/15/9-reasons-politifact-unqualified-label-fake-news/

  7. Libby says:

    Jack, about this bit:

    “This began as a vendetta against Hillary long before Trump was a contender ….”

    This is probably true, as Hils has never bothered to hide her disdain for Pooty and all his works. So, how do you feel about having fallen into line with Pooty’s political agenda for this country?

    Just wondering.

    • Peggy says:

      Have to wonder what Obama was referring to when he was caught in that off mic moment telling Putin he’d have more flexibility after the 2012 election? What could he be more flexible about? Taking out Hillary or avoiding the red line in Syria?

  8. More Cmmon Sense says:

    The CIA claims they have proof that the hacking of the DNC email was done by the Russians. I have a Master’s Degree in Computer Science and have worked in the computer industry since 1980, most recently developing networking software, and I don’t believe it is possible for them to have proof.

    Anyone that has a computer background can cover their tracks. If there is information pointing to Russia it’s because someone wanted it to point to Russia.

    When one computer on the internet accesses another computer on the internet it is done through a connection between two nodes identified by IP addresses. An IP address is a unique address that identifies an internet node that could be a computer, router, server, or other form of computer. For example http://www.amazon.com has an ip address of 54.239.25.192. When one makes a request of another computer on the internet the request packet contains the target IP and the source IP. When the hackers accessed the DNC’s email server every packet for every request that was made of the DNC server contained the IP address of the source so the DNC’s email server knows where to send the response. Well, you would assume that all you have to do is capture one of these packets and you would know who the hacker was (or at least where they are) based on the source IP address. To a certain degree that is true. However just because that IP address might be in Russia does not mean that is where the original request originated.

    There are servers called proxy servers. I can log into a proxy server using an encrypted connection and pass all my requests through that proxy server and all of my requests would appear to be coming from that proxy server. Let’s say I open my browser and go to http://www.amazon.com. Again all of my requests will include my IP address so it would be easy to identify me as the source of the request. However, if I log into a proxy server using a VPN and make the request through the proxy server all the people at amazon will be able to say is the requests came from the proxy server. Any response to me would go to the proxy server and the proxy server would forward it to me. My connection to the proxy server would be encrypted so you can’t look at the traffic and see the response leaving the proxy server coming to me.

    That’s just one level of indirection. If someone wants to guarantee there is no way to track them they would go through multi-levels of proxy servers. They might even loop back through a couple of servers more than once just to make it even more difficult.

    In the case of the hack of the DNC server the only thing they can be sure of is the final IP address. The hackers would have to be total idiots if that final IP address was theirs.

    So it must be difficult to get a Russian proxy server, right? Wrong!. Here is a link http://spys.ru/free-proxy-list/RU/ which contains a list of free proxy servers in Russia. Now, it is doubtful that they would use a free public proxy server if they were trying to pin this on the Russians. If the source IP address matched one of these public servers it would be obvious that the hacker was trying disguise their identity. Instead you would probably go a different route. All unix, linux, or windows based computers can run proxy software. All you have to do is install the software and do a little system configuration and the system would operate as a proxy server without the computer owner even knowing it. The only way they could identify that the system was running as a proxy server would be to list the running processes, list the listening ports, or monitor the packets on the network using packet sniffing software. These are all things you wouldn’t do unless you suspected you had been hacked.

    So here is how I believe this was done. The hackers first hacked into one or more computers in Russia. I suspect they did the same thing in a number of places in the world. Once they hacked into these systems they set them up running proxy software in the background. They then connected through these proxy servers with the last server in Russia. Then they hacked the DNC server.

    I do not hack computers but I’m aware of some of the techniques because I have to make sure security holes are closed in the software I work with. However, I believe if I tried I would be successful in finding a computer in another country that I could hack into and control. There are many people all over the world that have the skills to do the same thing. Not everybody can do it but it really isn’t that difficult.

    I hope you can see that the CIA can’t be sure about who hacked the system even if they happened to catch them in the act. If the evidence pointed to Russia it is because the hacker wanted it that way.

    There were some comments made that the software tools they were using also identified who the hackers were. The person interviewed gave the example of a safe cracker that always used the same kind of saw. Basing a determination of who the hackers are on this is also not reasonable. A terrorist bomb maker might use the same components or techniques each time so knowing what was used in a bombing might be useful but someone can always use the same components and techniques to shift the blame away from themselves.

    Software techniques can be unique and might be useful to identify who could have been the hacker but it isn’t proof. Hackers share software all the time. There are websites that hackers post their hacking programs. But, lets assume that the hackers in question didn’t give out their software. If that is the situation we have the hacker as a potential source of the hacking but we also have all the people out there that know this is their technique. What if the computer security people of Government A tied a hacking technique to hackers working for Government B and then used the same technique to hack computers used by Government C? Wouldn’t that throw the focus on to Government B? Or, worse yet, what if computer security people from Government A tied a hacking technique to hackers from Government B and then used that technique to hack Government A computers to create a political issue using Government B as the bad guys?

    The bottom line is there is no way they can identify who is really responsible for the hacking. I suspect they are saying they can for political purposes. Our government has teams of people that attempt to hack the computers of other governments. I’m sure our intelligence people have a list of computers in Russia operated by the Russian government that can be hacked. They would not make this known because then they could monitor what the Russians are doing. Do we want to consider the possibility that this operation originated from within the US by the US government or maybe some group that wanted to expose Hillary’s activities?

    Whether you want to blame the Russians or not, the real issue here is what the hacking exposed. The material released by Wikileaks are actual emails from the DNC and Hillary Clinton. No one is disputing the content; not even the DNC and Hillary. If someone changed their vote because of the content of the emails is that someone interfering in our election process? Granted if the released material was fabricated information then it would definitely be interference and would be wrong. But the information that was exposed was the truth. What wrong was done. Let’s assume the Russians were involved and lets assume having Trump as president was advantagous to the Russians compared to having Hillary as president. If they only exposed the truth and did not fabricate any information and that changed the course of the election did they do harm or did they do us a favor.

    • Tina says:

      Thank you MCS . Not only have you explained this in a way anyone could understand you’ve also nailed the problem for Hillary and the DNC…the content of their emails did the damage if anything did.

      The shift toward Trump involves so much more than these emails. They continue to be an issue because the left can’t accept the fact that the nation has rejected them.

    • Libby says:

      ” If they only exposed the truth and did not fabricate any information and that changed the course of the election did they do harm or did they do us a favor.”

      Ah, but not all the truth. The CIA reports that the RNC and Trump Campaign were also hacked … but not leaked.

      Aren’t you just the littlest bit curious?

      And should you really be so content to be manipulated?

  9. No Longer Deplorable J Soden says:

    $hrilLIARy’s recent speech blaming the Russians played the woman card and the victim card.
    Unfortunately for her, she’s just not playing with a full deck.

  10. No Longer Deplorable J Soden says:

    Gotta wonder why the Demwits can’t seem to come up with anyone but crooks as either a candidate or as a proposed head of the DNC . . . . . .
    http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/12/16/dnc-chair-candidate-tom-perez-had-his-own-clinton-style-email-scandal-at-dept-of-justice/

  11. Chesterfield says:

    Hey Jack,

    In that ethics class of yours are the discussing this?

    LA County Considers $1 Million in Taxpayer Funds to Help Illegals Fight Deportation

    http://www.breitbart.com/california/2016/12/16/la-county-considers-setting-aside-1-million-help-illegals-fight-deportation/

  12. Dewster says:

    Investigations are a waste of Money.

    The FBI, CIA, and NSA have all the info they need.

    Maybe one should look at these agencies as they battle. They finally forced the FBI to agree right before PBO announces an Investigation?

    The CIA has a very bad track record. Not to mention their well known Program that sends so called journalists into media.

    History that applies:
    http://carlbernstein.com/magazine_cia_and_media.php

    Side note even Anderson Cooper went to CIA school. Once CIA Always CIA or a whistleblower.

    Remember History and the information we have learned over the years.

    It was said way before this all started One side colludes with Russia and the Hilary side wants to overthrow Putin.

    This is a Non partisan issue for the people.

    We are being lied to on many levels. Both sides.

    Congress is full of it.

    Both Dems and Reps lie (some are ignorant) as they play political games for their big money handlers and cover their own tracks. They are beholden to campaign donations to function.

    I maintain this is a Huge House of cards we have shaken to it’s core. As we get information in the form of leaks we see more Propaganda hit all MSM. Whether it be Fox, CNN, or MSNBC, we now see a level of propaganda like no other.

    Do you see Obama doing anything on his way out? NO He is leaving quietly kicking the can down the road? That alone is disgusting. But then again he is playing the game as they all are.

    They are all puppets for the Cabal.

    Both Parties are responsible for election cheating that undermines Democracy. They will not go after each other on that because this is a war of the donors who run the gov. The people are lied to, Brainwashed by fake Mainstream Media, and are of no importance.

    They are using this fake news meme to censor. The Big MSM Media are the fact checkers when we can prove their fake news?

    Bottom Line the Clinton Foundation is the Key to shake the whole world. The emails came from inside leaks and are real. The Bush/Cheney admin operated the same way. We have a serious coup in action to which there are 2 Political Parties allowing it.

    This coup started decades ago and is well documented through History

    Stop this Party Game. This is how the coup succeeds.

  13. Dewster says:

    https://theintercept.com/2016/04/14/in-undisclosed-cia-investments-social-media-mining-looms-large/

    One last thing. Authoritarian governments collect data on citizens before they flip the switch.

    Think! Cut out Party Politics! No One cares! It is all of them!

    They collect more and more Data on citizens while they leave intel open ? Easy to hack? But remember the leaks came from the inside. #Whistleblowers.

    Name an incident the massive data collection has stopped?

    They collect so much data they can not even use it to protect us.

    They are categorizing us?

    Did you Read Milton Mayer’s “They thought they were free”? And look at the dangers we face.

    “This separation of government from people, this widening of the gap, took place so gradually and so insensibly, each step disguised (perhaps not even intentionally) as a temporary emergency measure or associated with true patriotic allegiance or with real social purposes. And all the crises and reforms (real reforms, too) so occupied the people that they did not see the slow motion underneath, of the whole process of government growing remoter and remoter.”

    Why are so many people afraid?

    Because Trump’s mental state is unstable and retaliatory. Both are economic criminals. And yet those choices were forced on us.

    The Surveillance state and corporate militarization of police and data collection on US citizens is far more dangerous than you even will admit.

    We are in a constitutional crisis and if we do not unite and talk about this we could end up in citizens overthrow of the Gov. That usually works out very bad in history.

    We need to throw out these criminals and their big money interests. We need to restore the gov to we the people and protect the Constitution.

    Start with Free Speech. Censorship is bad. Educate people to spot fake news.

    I would have said this with either trump or Hillary as President. They are both dangerous.

  14. Tina says:

    “Why are so many people afraid?… Because Trump’s mental state is unstable and retaliatory.”

    Your proof?

    You should know…we do not favor censorship and we have been exposing “fake news” for a couple of decades. I’d say much of what you think about republicans is due to fake news.

    Dangerous? what makes Trump dangerous…be specific!

  15. Peggy says:

    Liberals’ logic is nonexistent.

    If the Russians were trying to effect our election by helping Trump why did Hillary get more than 2 million more votes? If the Russians had been successful Trump would have beaten her in the popular vote too.

    Did the Russians somehow get into Hillary’s and her campaign managers brains and convince them to not campaign in Wisconsin and Michigan for the coveted electoral college votes?

    Hillary lost because the answer to both questions above is, no. Loosing is not acceptable to Democrats so they are will pull out every dirty trick they can for the next four years. Working to advance the progressive/communist agenda for decades is slipping through their fingers and they’re in panic mode. One senator is already talking about impeachment.

    • Libby says:

      “One senator is already talking about impeachment.”

      Peggy, if Trump refuses to divest of his foreign business interests, sell, they’ve got rock-solid Constitutional ground upon which to impeach the man. If he doesn’t want such efforts cluttering up his first 100 days, that’s what he has to do … sell.

      He won’t do it, though. And so he, and the 115th Congress will be long remembered for putting politics above the law … big time.

  16. Pie Guevara says:

    “Mark my words” Dopester will never rise above being a witless, slur mongering twit of no consequence or interest.

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