Senator Hassan Responds to Report of Russian Hackers Reaching U.S. Electric Utility Control Rooms

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following statement today in response to a Wall Street Journal report that Russian hackers appear to have carried out sophisticated cyberattacks that put them inside control rooms of electric utility companies in the United States:

“Today’s report that Russian hackers appear to have penetrated control rooms of U.S. electric utility companies is deeply concerning. These reports reinforce that Russia seems to be positioning itself to carry out crippling attacks on our country’s critical infrastructure that could evade some of our existing cyber defenses and thereby threaten the safety of our people and the security of our country. We need more information from the Department of Homeland Security on this latest report so that we can harden our defenses, prevent further cyberattacks, and punish Russia for its continued shameless attacks on our country. As a member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I will work across party lines to get to the bottom of this and to keep our country safe, secure, and free.”

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