RantCrush Top 5: April 26, 2017

A Japanese anti-virus firm has discovered that the same hacker groups that targeted Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the DNC have attempted to hack French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron. The firm, Trend Micro, reports that the hacker groups Fancy Bear, APT 28, and Pawn Storm recently used similar techniques to attack Macron’s campaign as well as German political groups, one of which is associated with Angela Merkel’s party. Germany also has an election later this year.

The Kremlin has clearly favored Donald Trump and Marine Le Pen, the far-right candidate in France who is in favor of France leaving the EU. There has been speculation and fear of Russian meddling in European elections, but this is the first clear evidence. Trend Micro also said that the hackers haven’t shown a “normal” reaction to being caught, as most cybercriminals don’t like media attention and stop when they are discovered. “Pawn Storm doesn’t slow down at all. On the contrary: a lot has been written about Pawn Storm since fall of 2014, and their activities have only grown, both in aggressiveness and number,” the report said.

Russian hackers who targeted Hillary Clinton appear to attack France’s Emmanuel Macron https://t.co/D8PNc7wUbt pic.twitter.com/kABz8p2xWa

— The New York Times (@nytimes) April 25, 2017

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.