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US Cyber Command Operation Disrupted Internet Access of Russian Troll Factory on Day of 2018 Midterms: Report (washingtonpost.com)
An anonymous reader shares a report: The U.S. military blocked Internet access to an infamous Russian entity seeking to sow discord among Americans during the 2018 midterms, several U.S. officials said, a warning that the group's operations against the United States are not cost-free. The strike on the Internet Research Agency in St. Petersburg, a company underwritten by an oligarch close to President VladiÂmir Putin, was part of the first offensive cyber campaign against Russia designed to thwart attempts to interfere with a U.S. election, the officials said. "They basically took the IRA offline," according to one individual familiar with the matter who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss classified information. "They shut 'em down." The operation marked the first muscle-flexing by U.S. Cyber Command, with intelligence from the National Security Agency, under new authorities it was granted by President Trump and Congress last year to bolster offensive capabilities.
is in no part a "national security" or otherwise strategic resource.
A single place full of people's likes and dislikes, vacation schedules, who's in their circles of friends and famlies, what car they own, where they live.. pictures and vids of all of the above and more.... none of this is strategic?
It's very strategic, just not to the normal, well-adjusted human. But for thieves, conmen, and anyone interested in gathering intel on a target? Pricelessly strategic.
The "Civilized World" jumped the shark ca. 1973.
Republicans don't seem to care at all about this, since the russians helped their team win.
I thought they were the "our guns protect your freedom" patriots who love 'murica so much?
Small minded Republicans, ask yourselves, why would Putin want Trump to win? Is it because he loves you and loves 'Murica?
Maybe, just maybe there is a different reason. Maybe he knows something you don't.
Of course, should the democrats win in the next election, I am pretty sure the world will hear you screaming your disingenuous little hearts out about how the Russians hacked the elections and how the results are not valid and blah blah blah. Why? Because you are pieces of shit who don't care about the US, or the world at large. You only care that your teams wins, regardless of what it costs every other person on the planet.
...but most of the damage is done in the weeks leading up to the election. Shutting them down on election day is too late.
One of our competitors trademarked the term "hypothesis". From now on, we will call them "boneheaded ideas".
Maybe. Or maybe once exposed, it was in both sides' interests to appear tough. After all, Russia thinks sanctions are bad now...
Exposed?
What has been exposed, pray tell?
After more than two fucking years, Mueller has managed to find that a few lobbyists failed to register as foreign agents?
Two years, and that's ALL?
From the same fucking FBI that deliberately ignored the law when James Comey pulled "no reasonable prosecutor" out of his ass in order to exonerate Hillary!?
From the same fucking FBI that worked to create an "insurance policy" against Trump winning?
From the same fucking FBI that withheld evidence they knew the Steele dossier was paid for by Hillary! while also being completely unverified from FISA judges in order to spy on Trump? FOUR TIMES??
And this same FBI, in two fucking years, has NOTHING to show Trump colluded with Russia at all?
Despite the obvious anti-Trump bias they've consistently displayed?
THEY HAVE NOTHING
The only thing exposed is the partisan hackery.
Hillary! is not President!!! Trump is!!!! BWHAAAA HAAAA HAAAAAAAA!!!!!
I hope that makes you feel like you're going to explode. I really do.
I don't know why I bother, since you're clearly determined. Stop pushing political narratives. Hell, this would even be worth discussing if it weren't the thousandth article pushing "Russia hacked the elections". The ironic thing is your side has so thoroughly discredited itself that when you have real news that supports your cause it is going to be ignored. I don't even like Trump!
If video games influenced behavior the Pac Man generation would be eating pills and running away from their problems.
You do realize that the vast majority of Facebook is fake-as-hell information
This is an example of Sturgeon's Law: 90% of everything is crap.
But that doesn't much diminish the value of the remaining 10%. Knowing everyone's friend graph is valuable information. Knowing everyone's interests is also valuable. Knowing who is easily influenced by the false information is very valuable.
Mueller's investigation was suppose to find out whether or not Trump "colluded" with Russia during the campaign. The only problem is that "collusion" is not a crime without an underlying illegal act. Even the democrats acknowledged early on that there is no evidence that Russia's actions effected the actual voting process. Even the democrats agree that so far the indictments Mueller has filed have absolutely nothing to do with Trump colluding with Russia which was the entre purpose of the investigation.
The real investigation needed would be why did the Obama administration act on all the intelligence they had in hand 8 months before the Presidential election? They waited until after the election to publicize the information. Their reason at the time is they did not want to influence the campaign. So they had proof Russia was trying to influence the election but didn't release it because it might influence the election. Why is it that Russia is allowed to influence the election and not the US? Maybe Obama was convinced that Clinton was going to win the election so there really wasn't a big promise. Would any of the ongoing investigations ever seen the light of day if Clinton won? Would Facebook have been called to Congress to explain how their platform was used to manipulate the voters? Personally I do not think this entire matter would have pursued in any form or fashion had Clinton won.