A number of what The Wall Street Journal has termed “high-profile” arrests in Russia, tied in part to that country’s Federal Security Service, have pointed to Russian hacking that had an impact in the United States.
Russia itself, according to WSJ, has described the arrests, with two officials in intelligence at the FSB, along with a Kaspersky Lab employee, as taking place in a treason case.
Those arrests, said the news publication, “have fueled speculation” amid the intelligence community here in the U.S. that the arrests are part of investigations into hacking that sought to influence the U.S. presidential election late last year. The involvement of Russia into U.S. affairs also extended to the Trump campaign with a dossier containing unverified information about the then-candidate Trump.
Kaspersky Lab has said that an employee of the firm has been arrested, WSJ stated, and has said the arrests are not centered on the firm. The Kremlin itself has said that briefings have taken place to inform President Vladimir Putin on the espionage dealings and arrests.
