Microsoft has issued a warning that the Russian hacker group Midnight Blizzard is targeting U.S. individuals in government, academia, defense, and non-governmental organizations with a wave of highly targeted phishing emails.
This alert, posted on October 29, arrives just a week before the U.S. presidential election, amid accusations from U.S. intelligence that Russia is attempting to interfere with the election to undermine the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.
The phishing campaign, first detected by Microsoft on October 22, reportedly involved thousands of emails sent to over 100 organizations.
"Based on our investigation of previous Midnight Blizzard spear-phishing campaigns, we assess that the goal of this operation is likely intelligence collection," Microsoft stated in a press release.
Midnight Blizzard has been linked by U.S. and U.K. authorities to Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).
Active since 2018, the group typically targets governments, diplomatic entities, NGOs, and IT service providers, focusing primarily on the United States and Europe.
These phishing emails leverage social engineering tactics, manipulating recipients by evoking emotions like fear, urgency, or curiosity. The emails often impersonate credible entities, such as banks or government agencies, to appear authentic and increase the chances of a response from potential victims.
