Russian espionage in the United States

{{main|Soviet espionage in the United States|Intelligence agencies of Russia}}

The KGB was the main security agency for the Soviet Union from 1954 until its break-up in 1991. The main duties of the KGB were to gather intelligence in other nations, conduct counterintelligence, maintain the secret police, KGB military corps and the border guards, suppress internal resistance, and conduct electronic espionage. According to former KGB Major General Oleg Kalugin, who was head of the KGB's operations in the United States, the "heart and soul" of Soviet intelligence was "not intelligence collection, but subversion: active measures to weaken the West, to drive wedges in the Western community alliances of all sorts, particularly NATO, to sow discord among allies, to weaken the United States in the eyes of the people of Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and thus to prepare ground in case the war really occurs."{{Cite journal|last=Abrams|first=Steve|date=2016|title=Beyond Propaganda: Soviet Active Measures in Putin's Russia|journal=Connections|volume=15|issue=1|pages=5–31|doi=10.11610/Connections.15.1.01|jstor=26326426|issn=1812-1098|doi-access=free}}[https://web.archive.org/web/20070627183623/http://www3.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/episodes/21/interviews/kalugin/ Interview of Oleg Kalugin on CNN] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070627183623/http://www3.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/episodes/21/interviews/kalugin/|date=June 27, 2007}}

In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed, and the KGB was reorganized into multiple subsidiary organizations including the FSB (Federal Security Service).{{Cite web|last=Murawiec|first=Clifford G. Gaddy and Laurent|date=2002|title=The Higher Police: Vladimir Putin and His Predecessors|url=https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-higher-police-vladimir-putin-and-his-predecessors/|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Brookings|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|last=Prokop|first=Andrew|date=2018-07-18|title=Court documents provide new details about alleged Russian spy Maria Butina|url=https://www.vox.com/2018/7/18/17586538/maria-butina-russia-person-one|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Vox|language=en}} The Soviet Union formed two other well known agencies: The GRU (The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation) and the SVR (Foreign Intelligence Service).

The GRU (The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation) is Russia's military intelligence. The GRU remained intact when the KGB partitioned into the FSB and SVR, and keeps the same abbreviation as the Soviet-era GRU.{{Cite news|date=2021-04-19|title=Why Russia's GRU military intelligence service is so feared|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56798001|access-date=2021-05-26}} According to the Federation of American Scientists, the GRU focuses on "gathering human intelligence (HUMINT) through military attachés and foreign agents". Other than gathering human intelligence, the GRU also maintains "significant signals intelligence (SIGINT) and imagery reconnaissance along with satellite imagery (IMINT) capabilities".{{cite web|title=Operations of the Main Intelligence Administration (GRU) Glavnoye Razvedyvatelnoye Upravlenie - Russia / Soviet Intelligence Agencies|url=https://fas.org/irp/world/russia/gru/ops.htm|access-date=15 November 2014|publisher=Federation of American Scientists}} The modern GRU has been connected to multiple crises and interference actions, and the U.S. has charged it for major cyberattacks, related to disruption of the Ukrainian power grid, targeting organizations investigating the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, and hacking the DNC in 2016 as part of election interference.{{Cite news|title=U.S. charges Russian intelligence officers in several high-profile cyberattacks|language=en-US|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/russia-cyberattacks-election-interference/2020/10/19/51a84208-1208-11eb-bc10-40b25382f1be_story.html|access-date=2021-05-26|issn=0190-8286}}

The SVR (Foreign Intelligence Service) was formed in December 1991 after the fragmentation of the KGB. The SVR replaced the KGB's overseas arm. According to former SVR defector Sergei Tretyakov, in the 1990s, SVR agents were secretly scattered across New York City to gather intelligence for the Kremlin in Russia.

After the transition from the Soviet Union to the Russian Federation, new discoveries were made about Soviet-era espionage. The Venona project, declassified in 1995 by the Moynihan Commission, contained extensive evidence of the activities of Soviet spy networks in America,{{cite book|last=Moynihan|first=Daniel Patrick|url=https://archive.org/details/secrecyamericane00moyn|title=Secrecy: The American Experience|publisher=Yale University Press|year=1998|isbn=978-0-300-08079-7|page=[https://archive.org/details/secrecyamericane00moyn/page/15 15]|url-access=registration}} as did the Mitrokhin Archive revealed from 1992-1999.

Active measures have continued in the post-Soviet era in the Russian Federation and are in many ways based on Cold War schematics.{{Cite book|last=Bertelsen|first=Olga|title=Russian Active Measures: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow|date=March 2021 |publisher=ibidem Press |isbn=978-3-8382-1529-7 |url=https://cup.columbia.edu/book/russian-active-measures/9783838215297}} Active measures, as first formulated in the Soviet KGB, were a form of political warfare, offensive programs such as disinformation, propaganda, deception, sabotage, destabilization and espionage.

According to the Mitrokhin Archives, active measures were taught in the Andropov Institute of the KGB situated at SVR (Foreign Intelligence Service) headquarters in Yasenevo District of Moscow. The head of the "active measures department" was Yuri Modin, former controller of the Cambridge Five spy ring.{{cite book|last1=Mitrokhin|first1=Vasili|url=https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/25373/the-mitrokhin-archive/|title=The Mitrokhin Archive: The KGB in Europe and the West|last2=Andrew|first2=Christopher|date=2000|publisher=Penguin|isbn=0-14-028487-7|author-link1=Vasili Mitrokhin|author-link2=Christopher Andrew (historian)}} (en.wikipedia) ([https://books.google.com/books?id=T3pzswEACAAJ&dq=The%20Mitrokhin%20Archive google books]) The former Andropov Institute became the Academy of Foreign Intelligence and is now operated by the SVR.{{cite news|last=Weiss|first=Michael|date=December 27, 2017|title=Revealed: The Secret KGB Manual for Recruiting Spies|publisher=The Daily Beast|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-kgb-papers-how-putin-learned-his-spycraft-part-1?ref=home|access-date=January 2, 2018|quote=The foreign arm is today known as the SVR, which is the actual successor of the First Chief Directorate; the Andropov Red Banner Institute, in fact, is now called the SVR Academy.}}

The improvement of technology and the world's interconnectivity has made it easier for Russian intelligence to interfere.{{Cite web|last=Walton|first=Calder|date=2016-12-23|title="Active measures": a history of Russian interference in US elections|url=https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/science-and-technology/active-measures-a-history-of-russian-interference-in-us-elections|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Prospect Magazine|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|last=Golden|first=Daniel|title=Why Russian Spies Really Like American Universities|url=https://www.propublica.org/article/why-russian-spies-really-like-american-universities?token=AGa2anA1UiyAlbPFtxzC6UPDE5d3vcZ-|access-date=2021-04-05|website=ProPublica|date=23 July 2018 |language=en}} However traditional tactics of human espionage persist.

Colonel Sergei Tretyakov, otherwise known as Comrade J, was a Russian SVR officer who defected to the United States in October 2000.{{Cite news|last=Grimes|first=William|date=2010-07-10|title=Sergei Tretyakov, Spy Who Fled to U.S., Dies at 53|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/10/world/europe/10tretyakov.html|access-date=2021-04-01|issn=0362-4331}} Tretyakov grew up aware of the KGB in Russia, due to his mother's and grandmothers' involvement. As Tretyakov grew up in the Soviet Union, he worshiped the idea of being a part of the KGB. While he was a young man in the KGB, he was given the responsibility to be the leader of the Young Communist League for nearly three years. Tretyakov spent many years in the KGB until the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, and he became a colonel in the SVR. From 1995 to 2000, Tretyakov was responsible for all Russian covert operations in New York City and at the United Nations. According to Pete Earley, in 1997, Tretyakov might have begun supplying United States officials with Russian information. Either at this point or after his official defection, Tretyakov explained to the United States how Russia was spying throughout New York City and the rest of the United States, as well as how Russian intelligence spread throughout Manhattan and the rest of America. Tretyakov became a US citizen in 2007 and then three years later died at the age of 53.

File:June 2020- Laptop from Operation Ghost Stories.jpg

From the end of the 1980s, KGB and later SVR began to create "a second echelon" of "auxiliary agents in addition to our main weapons, illegals and special agents", according to former SVR officer Kouzminov.Alexander Kouzminov Biological Espionage: Special Operations of the Soviet and Russian Foreign Intelligence Services in the West, Greenhill Books, 2006, {{ISBN|1-85367-646-2}} {{cite web |url=http://www.calitreview.com/Interviews/int_kouzminov_8013.htm |title=Interview: Alexander Kouzminov, Author of Biological Espionage |access-date=2005-04-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050425151231/http://www.calitreview.com/Interviews/int_kouzminov_8013.htm |archive-date=2005-04-25 }} These agents are legal immigrants, including scientists and other professionals. Another SVR officer, Vasili Mitrokhin, who defected to Britain in 1992, described details about thousands of Russian agents and intelligence officers, some of them "illegals" who live under deep cover abroad.{{Cite web|title=The Sword and the Shield|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/andrew-sword.html?simple=True|access-date=2021-05-26|website=archive.nytimes.com}}

In 2000, the FBI learned of multiple sets of Russian spies in the U.S. In 2010, the FBI arrested 10 Russian agents, whose deep cover operation was named the Illegals Program by the Department of Justice. Posing as ordinary American citizens, the Russian agents tried to build contacts with academics, industrialists, and policymakers to gain access to intelligence. They were the target of a multi-year FBI investigation called Operation Ghost Stories, which culminated at the end of June 2010 with the arrest of ten people in the U.S. and an eleventh in Cyprus.{{cite web|title=The Russian Spy Ring of 2010, The Use of Ciphers and Radio Messages|url=http://www.numbers-stations.com/russian-spy-ring|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216004006/http://www.numbers-stations.com/russian-spy-ring|archive-date=February 16, 2015|access-date=31 January 2015|publisher=The NSRIC}} The ten sleeper agents were charged with "carrying out long-term, 'deep-cover' assignments in the United States on behalf of the Russian Federation.""[https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/operation-ghost-stories-inside-the-russian-spy-case Operation Ghost Stories: Inside the Russian Spy Case] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160417170511/https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2011/october/russian_103111/russian_103111|date=April 17, 2016}}' (October 31, 2011). Federal Bureau of Investigation.[https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2010/June/10-nsd-753.html Ten Alleged Secret Agents Arrested in the United States] Monday, June 28, 2010, United States Department of Justice official web site.Shifrel, Scott; Kennedy, Helen; and Sherisan, Michael. [http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/2010/06/29/2010-06-29_russian_spy_ring_11th_suspect_arrested_in_cyprus_moscow_calls_spy_claims_baseles.html "Russian spy ring: 11th suspect arrested in Cyprus; Moscow calls spy claims 'baseless and improper'"], Daily News (New York), June 29, 2010. Retrieved July 7, 2010.{{Cite web|date=2010-06-28|title=FBI breaks up alleged Russian spy ring in deep cover|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jun/29/fbi-breaks-up-alleged-russian-spy-ring-deep-cover|access-date=2021-04-01|website=the Guardian|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Russian spies living among us: Inside the FBI's "Operation Ghost Stories"|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/russian-spies-operation-ghost-stories-fbi-declassified/|access-date=2021-04-01|website=www.cbsnews.com|date=13 October 2020 |language=en-US}}

Former CIA officer Harold James Nicholson was twice convicted{{Clarify|date=June 2020}} as a spy for Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).{{cite news |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/twice-convicted-ex-cia-spy-gets-8-more-years/ |work=Fox News |agency=Associated Press |date=January 19, 2011 |access-date=August 25, 2013 |title=Twice convicted ex-CIA spy gets 8 more years |archive-date=November 2, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151102112405/http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/01/18/twice-convicted-ex-cia-spy-gets-years/ |url-status=live }} A combination of events in the 90s began the FBI's investigation into Nicholson. He met with SVR officials away from the embassy and what followed was a $12,000 transfer to his bank account. He failed three polygraphs that noted questions like "are you hiding involvement with a foreign intelligence service?" This limited his access to Russian intelligence officials and by 1996, the FBI were able to arrest him inside Dulles Airport. On him was a computer disc containing classified CIA files and ten rolls of film showing top secret documents. Nicholson admitted to the passing of classified information to the SVR from 1994 to 1996 and was convicted of espionage.{{cite news|last=Weiner|first=Tim|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 6, 1997|access-date=January 25, 2011|title=C.I.A. Traitor, Saying He Wanted Cash for Family, Gets 23 Years|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/06/06/us/cia-traitor-saying-he-wanted-cash-for-family-gets-23-years.html?ref=haroldjnicholson|archive-date=May 30, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530001825/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/06/06/us/cia-traitor-saying-he-wanted-cash-for-family-gets-23-years.html?ref=haroldjnicholson|url-status=live}}

Maria Butina is a Russian who was convicted in 2018 of acting as an unregistered foreign agent of the Russian Federation within the United States.{{cite news|author=Matt Apuzzo, Katie Benner and Sharon LaFraniere|date=July 16, 2018|title=Mariia Butina, Who Sought 'Back Channel' Meeting for Trump and Putin, Is Charged as Russian Agent|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/16/us/politics/trump-russia-indictment.html|url-status=live|access-date=July 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180717034550/http://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/16/us/politics/trump-russia-indictment.html|archive-date=July 17, 2018}}{{cite news|author=Vera Bergengruen|date=July 16, 2018|title=Charges Say Accused Russian Agent Used The NRA And The National Prayer Breakfast In Effort To Influence US Policy|newspaper=BuzzFeed News|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/verabergengruen/russian-gun-rights-nra-foreign-agent|url-status=live|access-date=July 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180717200021/https://www.buzzfeed.com/verabergengruen/russian-gun-rights-nra-foreign-agent|archive-date=July 17, 2018}} Butina tried to infiltrate conservative groups in the US, including the National Rifle Association of America, as part of an effort to promote Russian interests in the 2016 United States presidential election.{{cite news|title=Maria Butina Loved Guns, Trump and Russia. It Was a Cover, Prosecutors Say.|newspaper=The New York Times|date=18 July 2018 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/17/us/maria-butina-russian-agent-charges.html|url-status=live|accessdate=July 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718023838/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/17/us/maria-butina-russian-agent-charges.html|archive-date=July 18, 2018 |last1=Lafraniere |first1=Sharon |last2=Rosenberg |first2=Matthew |last3=Goldman |first3=Adam }}{{Subscription required|date=October 2023}}{{cite news|author=Guardian Staff|last2=Press|first2=Associated|date=26 April 2019|title=Maria Butina sentenced to 18 months for trying to infiltrate US right and NRA|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/apr/26/maria-butina-sentenced-18-months-russia-nra|url-status=live|accessdate=2019-08-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805211749/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/apr/26/maria-butina-sentenced-18-months-russia-nra|archive-date=August 5, 2019|issn=0261-3077|via=www.theguardian.com}}{{cite news|last=Fandos|first=Nicholas|date=December 3, 2017|title=Operative Offered Trump Campaign 'Kremlin Connection' Using N.R.A. Ties|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html|url-status=live|access-date=December 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203121011/http://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html|archive-date=December 3, 2017}}{{Subscription required|date=October 2023}} The Senate Intelligence Committee later concluded that she attempted to persuade the Trump campaign to establish a secret communications back channel with Russia.{{Cite web|last1=Barnes|first1=Julian E.|last2=Savage|first2=Charlie|date=August 18, 2020|title=8 Takeaways From the Senate Committee Report on Russian Interference|work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/18/us/politics/trump-russia-senate.html|via=NYTimes.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200818213602/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/18/us/politics/trump-russia-senate.html|archive-date=August 18, 2020|url-status=live}}{{Subscription required|date=October 2023}}

In February 2020, U.S. officials charged Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes, a Mexican citizen, in Miami for allegedly acting on behalf of a Russian agent who recruited him to collect information about the US government. The two met repeatedly in Moscow.{{Cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/19/us/hector-alejandro-cabrera-fuentes-spying-russia.html |title = Mexican Citizen is Accused of Spying for Russians in the U.S|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 19 February 2020|last1 = Cramer|first1 = Maria}}{{Cite web | url=https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/18/mexican-citizen-russia-florida-espionage-115907 |title = Mexican citizen accused of working for Russians in U.S| website=Politico | date=18 February 2020 }}

In May 2021, the U.S. sentenced former Army Green Beret Peter Debbins to 188 months in jail for conspiring with Russian intelligence operatives to illegally provide them with U.S. national defense information.{{cite news |author= |title=Former Army Green Beret Sentenced for Russian Espionage Conspiracy |url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva/pr/former-army-green-beret-sentenced-russian-espionage-conspiracy |work=U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Virginia |agency=Department of Justice |date=May 14, 2021 |access-date=May 24, 2021}}

In July 2022, U.S. officials arrested couple Walter Glenn Primrose (alias Bobby Edward Fort) and Gwynn Darle Morrison (alias Julie Lyn Montague), charging them with identity theft and conspiring against the government. Like the Illegals, both had assumed the identities of deceased U.S. children (Fort and Montague), though the couple appeared to have genuinely been born in and resided in the United States as Primrose and Morrison. As Fort, Primrose served in the Coast Guard as an avionics technician before becoming a defense contractor; he held a secret security clearance. In its complaint against the couple, the U.S. provided two images of them in KGB uniforms.{{cite news |last2=Melley |first2=Brian |last1=Kelleher |first1=Jennifer Sinco |date=July 27, 2022 |title=Hawaii couple charged with stealing IDs of dead Texas kids |url=https://apnews.com/article/texas-hawaii-identity-theft-us-coast-guard-a565a58855531e21c31fa48217174293 |work=Associated Press |access-date=July 27, 2022}}{{cite news |last2=Hughes |first2=Seamus |last1=Rohrlich |first1=Justin |date=July 26, 2022 |title=Hawaii couple charged with stealing IDs of dead Texas kids |url=https://www.yahoo.com/now/kgb-photo-deepens-mystery-texas-152705344.html |work=Yahoo! News |access-date=July 27, 2022}}

{{main|Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections|Links between Trump associates and Russian officials and spies}}

Russian espionage occurred during the 2016 US presidential election. There were numerous reports of Russian interference in the election since the nomination of President Trump occurred. According to the United States Intelligence Community and the Director of National Intelligence, there was evidence of the Russian government interfering to hurt democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton. Starting May 2017, former FBI Director Robert Mueller investigated the evidence and released a largely redacted 448-page report on his findings.

The Mueller Report consists mostly of the Trump administration's involvement and evidence of Russia's involvement. Mueller notes that there was a social media propaganda operation called the "troll farm," in which Russia's Internet Research Agency created fake accounts online that "favored candidate Trump and disparaged candidate Clinton."{{Cite web| title=Report On The Investigation Into Russian Interference In The 2016 Presidential Election | url=https://www.justice.gov/storage/report.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418150310/https://www.justice.gov/storage/report.pdf | archive-date=2019-04-18}} Russia targeted Clinton's emails after word from President Trump in which he's quoted saying, "Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 missing emails that are missing." Five hours later, Mueller reports, members of a key Russian intelligence unit targeted for the first time Clinton's personal office. There was also what Mueller called "Russian hacking and dumping operations" in which Russian intelligence officers hacked into the accounts of the Clinton campaign and Democratic party organizations. The material was then posted online by Russia themselves, and the other information was distributed by WikiLeaks. Russia repeatedly reached out to the Trump campaign to establish a connection to the Kremlin. Mueller writes, "The Russian contacts consisted of business connections, offers of assistance to the campaign, invitations for campaign officials and representatives of Russian government to meet, and policy positions seeking improved US-Russian relations.”

According to Mueller, Russia's foreign election interference “wasn’t a single attempt. They’re doing it as we sit here.”{{Cite web|last=Kreps|first=Sarah|date=2020-09-22|title=The shifting chessboard of international influence operations|url=https://www.brookings.edu/techstream/the-shifting-chessboard-of-international-influence-operations/|access-date=2021-04-01|website=Brookings|language=en-US}}

Ex-spy Yuri Shvets, who was a partner of the assassinated Alexander Litvinenko, believes that the KGB cultivated Trump as an asset for over 40 years.{{Cite web|last=staff|first=T. O. I.|title=KGB groomed Trump as an asset for 40 years, former Russian spy says|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/kgb-groomed-trump-as-an-asset-for-40-years-former-spy-says/|access-date=2021-04-01|website=www.timesofisrael.com|language=en-US}} Yuri Shvets, a source for journalist Craig Unger, compared the former president to the Cambridge Five who passed secrets to Moscow. Shvets believes that Semyon Kislin was a "spotter agent" who identified Trump as an asset in 1980. Among other things Shvets highlights Trump's visit to the Soviet Union in 1987.{{Cite web|date=2021-01-29|title='The perfect target': Russia cultivated Trump as asset for 40 years – ex-KGB spy|url=http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jan/29/trump-russia-asset-claims-former-kgb-spy-new-book|access-date=2021-04-01|website=the Guardian|language=en}} Yuri Shvets believes Trump was fed KGB talking points. For example, after Trump's return to New York, Trump took out full-page ads in major newspapers criticizing American allies and spending on NATO. Yuri Shvets claims that at the chief KGB directorate in Yasenevo, he received a cable celebrating the ad as a successful "active measure". Shvets described the Mueller Report as a "big disappointment" because it focused only on "crime-related issues" rather than "counterintelligence aspects".

Journalist Luke Harding argued that Trump's visit to the Soviet Union in 1987 was arranged by the KGB as part of KGB overtures to recruit a wider variety of agents.{{Cite web|last=Harding|first=Luke|title=The Hidden History of Trump's First Trip to Moscow|url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/11/19/trump-first-moscow-trip-215842|access-date=2021-04-01|website=POLITICO Magazine|date=19 November 2017 |language=en}}

In March 2018, the Trump administration ordered the expulsion of 60 alleged Russian spies from the United States following the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, as part of a joint effort with European allies who also expelled 50 alleged spies. The White House also ordered the closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle, based on the belief that the consulate was serving as a key base of operations for the Russian intelligence operations in the U.S.{{cite news|last1=Rucker|first1=Philip|last2=Birnbaum|first2=Michael|last3=Nakashima|first3=Ellen|date=26 March 2018|title=Trump administration expels 60 Russian officers, shuts Seattle consulate in response to attack on former spy in Britain|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-administration-expels-60-russian-officers-shuts-seattle-consulate-in-response-to-attack-on-former-spy-in-britain/2018/03/26/8ada3d8e-30f0-11e8-8bdd-cdb33a5eef83_story.html}} U.S. officials at the time estimated over 100 Russian spies posing as diplomats in the United States prior to the order.{{Cite news|last=Walcott|first=Warren Strobel, John|date=2018-03-28|title=Fewer Russian spies in U.S. but getting harder to track|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-russia-spies-idUSKBN1H40JW|access-date=2021-04-05}}

{{See also|Cyberwarfare by Russia}}

Cyber espionage has been more widely used after the Cold War.

During the Illegals Program up to 2010, Russian agents used steganography to exchange information, where concealed messages were inserted into otherwise innocuous files.{{Cite web|title=Russian Spies Thwarted By Old Technology?|url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/russian-spies-thwarted-by-old-technology|access-date=2021-04-01|website=IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News|language=en}}

In April 2015, CNN reported that "Russian hackers" had "penetrated sensitive parts of the White House" computers in "recent months." It was said that the FBI, the Secret Service, and other US intelligence agencies categorized the attacks "among the most sophisticated attacks ever launched against US government systems."{{cite news|last1=Evan Perez|last2=Shimon Prokupecz|date=8 April 2015|title=How the US thinks Russians hacked the White House|work=CNN|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2015/04/07/politics/how-russians-hacked-the-wh/index.html|access-date=17 December 2016|quote=Russian hackers behind the damaging cyber intrusion of the State Department in recent months used that perch to penetrate sensitive parts of the White House computer system, according to U.S. officials briefed on the investigation.|author2-link=Shimon Prokupecz}}

The 2020 United States federal government data breach has been blamed on Russian state-backed hacker groups by most sources.{{cite news|last1=Sanger|first1=David E.|last2=Perlroth|first2=Nicole|last3=Schmitt|first3=Eric|date=December 15, 2020|title=Scope of Russian Hack Becomes Clear: Multiple U.S. Agencies Were Hit|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/14/us/politics/russia-hack-nsa-homeland-security-pentagon.html|url-status=live|access-date=December 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218062201/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/14/us/politics/russia-hack-nsa-homeland-security-pentagon.html|archive-date=December 18, 2020}}{{cite web|date=2020-12-19|title=US cyber-attack: Russia 'clearly' behind SolarWinds operation, says Pompeo|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-55374945|access-date=2020-12-19|publisher=BBC}}{{Cite news|last=Washington|first=Georgi Kantchev in Moscow and Warren P. Strobel in|date=2021-01-02|title=How Russia's 'Info Warrior' Hackers Let Kremlin Play Geopolitics on the Cheap|language=en-US|work=Wall Street Journal|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-russias-info-warrior-hackers-let-kremlin-play-geopolitics-on-the-cheap-11609592401|access-date=2021-01-05|issn=0099-9660}} The cyberattack and data breach were reported to be among the worst cyber-espionage incidents ever suffered by the U.S., due to the sensitivity and high profile of the targets and the long duration (eight to nine months) in which the hackers had access.{{refn|{{cite news|last=Bossert|first=Thomas P.|date=December 17, 2020|title=Opinion | I Was the Homeland Security Adviser to Trump. We're Being Hacked.|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/16/opinion/fireeye-solarwinds-russia-hack.html|url-status=live|access-date=December 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201217112609/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/16/opinion/fireeye-solarwinds-russia-hack.html|archive-date=December 17, 2020}}{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-14/u-s-government-agencies-attacked-by-hackers-in-software-update|title=U.S. Agencies Exposed in Attack by Suspected Russian Hackers|date=December 14, 2020|publisher=Bloomberg L.P.|access-date=December 17, 2020|archive-date=December 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201216002322/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-14/u-s-government-agencies-attacked-by-hackers-in-software-update|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/cyber-attack-may-be-worst-hacking-case-in-the-history-of-america-2223270/|title=Cyber attack may be 'worst hacking case in the history of America'|work=Las Vegas Review-Journal|date=December 17, 2020|access-date=December 18, 2020|archive-date=December 18, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218062142/https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/cyber-attack-may-be-worst-hacking-case-in-the-history-of-america-2223270/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/russia-cyber-attack-us-trump-b1775632.html|title=US under major active cyberattack from Russia, Trump's former security adviser warns|date=December 17, 2020|website=The Independent|access-date=December 17, 2020|archive-date=December 18, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218062142/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/russia-cyber-attack-us-trump-b1775632.html|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/dec/18/orion-hack-solarwinds-explainer-us-government|date=December 18, 2020|newspaper=The Guardian|title=What we know – and still don't – about the worst-ever US government cyber-attack}}}} Within days of its discovery, at least 200 organizations around the world had been reported to be affected by the attack, and some of these may also have suffered data breaches.{{cite web|date=December 14, 2020|title=U.K. Government, NATO Join U.S. in Monitoring Risk From Hack|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-14/u-k-government-nato-join-u-s-in-monitoring-risk-from-hack|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215021953/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-14/u-k-government-nato-join-u-s-in-monitoring-risk-from-hack|archive-date=December 15, 2020|access-date=December 16, 2020|publisher=Bloomberg L.P.}}{{Cite news|date=December 19, 2020|title=At Least 200 Victims Identified in Suspected Russian Hacking|newspaper=Bloomberg |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-19/at-least-200-victims-identified-in-suspected-russian-hacking|via=www.bloomberg.com}} Affected organizations worldwide included NATO, the U.K. government, the European Parliament, Microsoft and others.

On July 1, 2021 a cybersecurity advisory from the NSA, FBI, CISA, and British NCSC warned of a GRU brute-force cyberattack campaign against American government and private sector organizations, as well as foreign and global organizations (particularly those in Europe), aimed at stealing data. Primary targets included the American government and military; defense, energy, and logistics industries; and political organizations. As of the July 2021 advisory, the campaign, which started in mid-2019, is still ongoing.{{cite web |url=https://www.nsa.gov/news-features/press-room/Article/2677750/nsa-partners-release-cybersecurity-advisory-on-brute-force-global-cyber-campaign/ |title=NSA, Partners Release Cybersecurity Advisory on Brute Force Global Cyber Campaign |website=nsa.gov |publisher=National Security Agency |access-date=July 2, 2021 |archive-date=July 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210702002139/https://www.nsa.gov/news-features/press-room/Article/2677750/nsa-partners-release-cybersecurity-advisory-on-brute-force-global-cyber-campaign/ |url-status=dead }}

{{main|Russian interference in the 2020 United States elections}}

According to a declassified DNI report released on March 16, 2021, there was evidence of broad efforts by Russia (and Iran) to shape the 2020 U.S. presidential election's outcome. However, there was no evidence that any votes, ballots, or voter registrations were directly changed. Russia's efforts had been aimed at "denigrating President Biden's candidacy and the Democratic Party, supporting former President Trump, undermining public confidence in the electoral process, and exacerbating sociopolitical divisions in the US", central to Moscow's interference effort having been reliance on Russian intelligence agencies′ proxies “to launder influence narratives” by using media organizations, U.S. officials and people close to Trump to push “misleading or unsubstantiated” allegations against Biden.{{Cite web|last=Tucker|first=Eric|date=2021-03-17|title=US: Putin approved operations to help Trump against Biden|url=https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-iran-moscow-elections-c640ed02202c9d44f0ad186ebd0b3396|access-date=2021-03-17|website=Associated Press}}{{Cite web|date=16 March 2021|title=READ: ODNI's declassified Intelligence Community assessment of foreign threats to the 2020 US federal elections|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/16/politics/read-odni-foreign-threats-2020/index.html|access-date=2021-03-17|website=CNN}}{{cite web|last=Collinson|first=Stephen|date=March 17, 2021|title=Analysis: New US intel report shows Russia, Trump and GOP acolytes have same goals|website=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/17/politics/trump-russia-elections/index.html|access-date=March 19, 2021|agency=CNN}}{{Cite web|last1=Cohen|first1=Zachary|last2=Cohen|first2=Marshall|last3=Polantz|first3=Katelyn|date=March 17, 2021|title=US intelligence report says Russia used Trump allies to influence 2020 election with goal of 'denigrating' Biden|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/16/politics/us-election-intel-report/index.html|access-date=March 19, 2021|website=CNN}}

The report specifically identified individuals controlled by the Russian government as having been involved in Russia's interference efforts, such as Konstantin Kilimnik and Andrii Derkach.{{Cite web|last=Eckel|first=Mike|date=2021-03-17|title=Five Things To Know About The U.S. Intelligence Report On Russian Election Interference|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/five-things-us-intelligence-report-russian-election-interference/31156225.html|access-date=2021-03-18|website=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty}} The report said that Putin was likely to have had "purview" over the activities of Andrii Derkach. According to the report, Putin had authorized the Russian influence operations.{{Cite web|last=Macias|first=Kevin Breuninger, Amanda|date=2021-03-16|title=Russia and Iran tried to interfere with 2020 election, U.S. intelligence agencies say|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/16/russia-and-iran-tried-to-interfere-with-2020-election-us-intelligence-agencies-say.html|access-date=2021-03-17|website=CNBC|language=en}} Following the publication of the DNI report, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff issued a statement that said, "Through proxies, Russia ran a successful intelligence operation that penetrated the former president’s inner circle."{{cite web|last=Schiff|first=Adam|author-link=Adam Schiff|date=March 16, 2021|title=Chairman Schiff Statement on 2020 Election Interference Report|url=https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1120|access-date=March 19, 2021|website=intelligence.house.gov}}

{{main|Active measures|Russian web brigades}}

According to a report by Oxford Internet Institute researchers including sociologist Philip N. Howard, social media played a major role in political polarization in the United States, due to computational propaganda -- "the use of automation, algorithms, and big-data analytics to manipulate public life"—such as the spread of fake news and conspiracy theories. The researchers highlighted the role of the Russian Internet Research Agency in attempts to undermine democracy in the US and exacerbate existing political divisions. The most prominent methods of misinformation were "organic posting, not advertisements", and influence operation activity increased after the 2016 election and was not limited to the election.{{Cite journal|last1=Howard|first1=Philip|last2=Ganesh|first2=Bharath|last3=Liotsiou|first3=Dimitra|last4=Kelly|first4=John|last5=François|first5=Camille|date=2019-10-01|title=The IRA, Social Media and Political Polarization in the United States, 2012-2018|url=https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/senatedocs/1|journal=U.S. Senate Documents}}{{Cite web|date=2018-12-18|title=Report: Russia still using social media to roil US politics|url=https://apnews.com/article/8890210ce2ce4256a7df6e4ab65c33d3|access-date=2021-03-28|website=AP NEWS}} Examples of efforts included "campaigning for African American voters to boycott elections or follow the wrong voting procedures in 2016", "encouraging extreme right-wing voters to be more confrontational", and "spreading sensationalist, conspiratorial, and other forms of junk political news and misinformation to voters across the political spectrum."

{{Portal|Russia|United States}}

• Foreign Intelligence Service (Russia)
• Illegals Program
• GRU
• Russia involvement in regime change
• Russia–United States relations
• Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections
• Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections and Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections (July 2016–election day)
• Soviet espionage in the United States
• Soviet Union–United States relations
• United States espionage in Russia

{{Reflist}}

{{Soviet Spies}}

{{Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections}}

{{Russia–United States relations}}

Category:Russia–United States relations

Category:Russian intelligence operations

Category:Espionage in the United States