Microsoft announced it is increasing its cybersecurity for think tanks in the U.S. and abroad, ahead of the European Parliament elections.
The company said that it has detected attacks against employees of the German Council on Foreign Relations, The Aspen Institutes in Europe, and The German Marshall Fund through its Threat Intelligence Center and Digital Crimes Unit.
“We believe the work of organizations like The German Marshall Fund and its Alliance for Securing Democracy are an essential part of efforts to secure democracies against those who seek to undermine it,” Microsoft Customer Security & Trust Vice President Tom Burt said in a blog post. “Many organizations essential to democracy do not have the resources or expertise to defend themselves against cyberattacks.”
The cyber attack targeted more than 100 accounts across Europe between September and December 2018. Microsoft said its ongoing investigation leads it to believe that Strontium, a Russian-linked hacker group, carried out the attack.
As a response to the hacks, Microsoft is expanding its cybersecurity service AccountGuard, which is part of its Defending Democracy Program, to 12 more European countries. France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain will now have access to Microsoft AccountGuard.
Tech companies across industries are preparing for more election interference efforts as poll dates near. Earlier this month, YouTube announced that it would no longer suggest conspiracy theory videos in an effort to curb the spread of misinformation.
Microsoft said tech companies “have a responsibility to help” to protect governments against cyber attacks and election interference. As more companies work to combat this worldwide issue, companies like Facebook are trying to clean up messes caused in previous elections.
