Cyber Wars? Vigilante Hacker Responds To Russia Computer Attacks
An American vigilante hacker known simply as the Jester broke into Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs website Friday night leaving behind an annoying emergency alert sound and a warning to stop messing with the United States.
The self-described gray hat hacker Jester was retaliating for the alleged Russian hack of the Democratic National Committee emails and their attempt to influence the American election, according to CNN Money.
“Comrades! We interrupt regular scheduled Russian Foreign Affairs Website programming to bring you the following important message. Knock it off. You may be able to push around nations around you, but this is America. Nobody is impressed.”
The cyber attack on Russia came Friday evening, after a series of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks shut down U.S. based internet sites across the country, according to CNN Money.
“I wanted to poke them in the eye and stop feeling like US is just taking it on the chin. Again. I’m not gonna sit around watching these f****rs laughing at us.”
Along with the warning to Russian hackers to leave the U.S. alone, Jester also left behind an annoying civil alert tone that plays before each emergency broadcast message on American radio, according to Gizmodo.
“Let’s get real, I know it’s you, even if by-proxy, and you know it’s you. Now, get to your room. Before I lose my temper.”
Jester was hoping Russia wouldn’t be able to repair the damage he did to their website until at least Monday, but as of Sunday, everything looked pretty normal.
The hacker first made headlines trolling Jihadist websites before it became the cool thing to do, then he moved on to harassing terrorists with offensive cartoons, dueling with WikiLeaks, and alerting internet service providers to ISIS supporters.
Yesterday's brutal DDoS attack is the beginning of a bleak future https://t.co/KHQq9XxDz1 pic.twitter.com/OAOcHC4CHE
— Gizmodo (@Gizmodo) October 22, 2016
He has limited his activity to enemies of America, which may be why rumors continue to circulate that the FBI turns a blind eye to his illegal activities because they approve of his methods.
The U.S. intelligence community has evidence linking Russia to the hacked DNC server and leaked Clinton emails and earlier this month the Obama administration officially accused the country of trying to interfere with American elections.
When making the announcement, Obama administration officials noted Russia has used cyber attacks to interfere with public opinion in Europe and Asia including an attack on the Ukraine on the eve of a national presidential election.
Russia, however, continues to deny any official involvement with the cyber attacks saying they aren’t responsible for the actions of their private citizens, according to RT.
“This is yet another fit of nonsense! Tens of thousands of hackers [try to break into] President Putin’s website daily. Many of these attacks can be traced to the United States. Yet we do not blame the White House or Langley every time.”
The online persona Guccifer 2.0 has claimed responsibility for posting emails from the Clinton Camp, but security experts say those sites are consistent with Russia-directed hacking efforts.
The White House has so far taken no official action, but the Obama administration has vowed to respond in a proportional way. The administration is considering actions such as economic sanctions or withdrawing diplomats, but so far there’s been nothing concrete.
Assistant Attorney General John Carlin, however, warned Russia that it wasn’t acceptable for the country to meddle in American internal affairs and there would be consequences for their actions, according to the Washington Post.
“You can and will be held accountable.”
What do you think about Russia’s alleged hack of Clinton’s emails and the response by vigilante hacker the Jester?
[Featured Image by Sean Gallup/Getty Images]
