‘They potentially have the capacity to cripple us’: Romney raises alarm about cyber-attack tied to Russia
Pompeo says Russia ‘pretty clearly’ behind cyberattack on US, but Trump casts doubts and downplays threat5 things you can do right now to protect yourself
Explainer:What you need to know about the Solarwinds, FireEye hack
Fact check:Syringes with RFID technology track vaccines, not recipients
“This is an extraordinarily damaging invasion and it went on for a long, long time,” Romney said.
The attackers infiltrated federal computer systems through a common piece of server software offered through a company called SolarWinds.
according to national security officials. The news has renewed calls for a more forceful U.S. cyber-posture against the country’s geopolitical rivals.
“I think we have to be much more serious about our cyber capabilities — offensive and defensive. I think we have to have a rethink about that at the Department of Defense, as well as our other agencies,” Romney urged. “And I think we have to have a very clear-eyed approach to how we deal with Russia going forward.”
Reports: Trump suggested naming Sidney Powell as special counsel on election in Oval Office meeting
In November, President Donald Trump fired CISA chief Chris Krebs for denouncing claims that the 2020 election was compromised by foreign actors.
Officials at the departments of Commerce, Energy, Homeland Security, Treasury and the National Security Council also acknowledged their systems were breached. Officials have widely called it the worst and most wide-reaching hack in American history.
“You can bring a country to its knees if people don’t have electricity, don’t have water and can’t communicate,” Romney cautioned. “What Russia appears to have done is put themselves in those systems in our country. They don’t need rockets to take those things out,” he warned.
Federal Courts:Biden’s impact on judiciary may be limited despite liberals’ talk of ‘court-packing’
“They potentially have the capacity to cripple us economically, they went to our businesses. They have the potential to also cripple us with regards to our water and electricity and so forth. So, this is very, very serious,” Romney stressed.
Even Trump’s fiercest critics say he may have gotten some world affairs right
Transition 2020:Biden signals sharp pivot from Trump’s unconventional foreign policy with pick of insider Antony Blinken
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the breach was a “very significant effort” that was “pretty likely” perpetrated by Russia during an interview on the Mark Levin Show, President Trump has downplayed the revelations, insisting “everything is well under control.”
Romney condemned the “inexcusable silence and inaction from the White House” on the issue during an interview with Sirius XM.
During his Meet the Press interview, Romney called Trump’s comments a “disappointment” but said it was typical of a president who “doesn’t want to recognize Russia for the problem that they are.”
President-elect Joe Biden has also condemned Trump’s downplaying of the situation, promising a potent response in the incoming administration.
Coronavirus:Here are the top US government officials who have received the coronavirus vaccine
“A good defense isn’t enough; we need to disrupt and deter our adversaries from undertaking significant cyberattacks in the first place,” Biden said Thursday. “I will not stand idly by in the face of cyberassaults on our nation.”
On current U.S. cyber policy, Romney observed that “Russia acted with impunity” because they “they didn’t fear what we would be able to do from a cyber capacity.” The senator argued the provocation “demands a response” but wasn’t sure “if we have the capacity to do that in a way that would be of the same scale or an even greater scale.”