The FBI has investigated cyberattacks targeting a Democratic primary opponent of Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., a pro-Russia Trump supporter, according to a report.
Democrat Dr. Hans Keirstead’s email, website, hosting service, and Twitter account were hit during a yearlong period starting in August 2017, campaign manager Kyle Quinn-Quesada told Rolling Stone in an interview published Wednesday. But FBI agents working in California and Washington never told the campaign if it had identified any suspects, he said.
Quinn-Quesada said neither Keirstead nor campaign staffers believed the attacks influenced the outcome of the tight top-two primary race in which Keirstead finished third. Keirstead has since thrown his support behind the other Democrat challenging Trump ally Rohrabacher, Harley Rouda.
News of the sustained attack comes as California approved legislation Wednesday to create a new Office of Elections Cybersecurity ahead of the 2018 midterm cycle, according to StateScoop. The office, if the legislation is signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, will be responsible for a $2 million budget for responding to any cyberattacks and countering misinformation related to elections.
In 2016, California was one of 21 states that in 2016 had election infrastructure attacked by Russian hackers.
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats cautioned in July that the warning lights indicating possible future election interference were “blinking red.” But Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has repeatedly come under fire for failing to take enough preventive measures at the state and federal levels.
“Attempts by Russia and other foreign entities to undermine public confidence in our nation’s elections cannot be ignored,” said California state assemblyman Marc Berman, who wrote the bill, per StateScoop. “[This] is an important step to ensuring that state and county elections officials have the information and the tools necessary to combat cyberattacks.”
