Lawmakers seek DHS insight regarding Russian cyberthreat protections

U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Mike Rounds (R-SD) joined 19 colleagues in sending correspondence to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, seeking information regarding agency efforts to protect the nation from Russian cyberthreats.

“The Russian government often engages in malicious cyber activities, including espionage, intellectual property theft, disinformation, propaganda, and cyberattacks, that target the United States,” the legislators wrote. “In response, the United States government has imposed sanctions on Russian security personnel and agents for various cyberattacks, including the SolarWinds cyber espionage campaign, and for acts of disinformation and interference, including Russian government-directed attempts to influence U.S. elections.”

The lawmakers maintain given Russia’s history of disruptive cyber and disinformation activities, they are concerned the United States may be targeted in retaliation for actions taken to impose costs on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

“As we stand with the Ukrainian people, impose crushing sanctions on Vladimir Putin’s regime and push for additional security assistance to help Ukraine defend itself, we also must work to secure the homeland from retaliatory cyber activities,” the legislators concluded.

Among other inquiries, the lawmakers requested information regarding what the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is doing to monitor and actively defend against Russian state-sponsored cyber threats; whether there is a strategy in place to address potential critical infrastructure targets; and how the agency is defending against Russian disinformation initiatives.