US indicts seven Russian agents

The United States on Thursday charged seven Russian intelligence officers with conspiring to hack computers and steal data from the nuclear energy company Westinghouse Electric Co as well as anti-doping watchdogs, sporting federations and an international agency probing the use of chemical weapons.

The charges of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and abuse and to commit wire fraud and money laundering came hours after Dutch authorities said they had disrupted an attempt by Russian intelligence agents to hack into the Hague-based Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in April. OPCW is tasked with probing the use of chemical weapons in Syria and the March 2018 poisoning of a former Russian spy in UK.

The Justice Department said one of the Russian officers researched Westinghouse and its employees online and stole log-in credentials of Westinghouse workers for servers in the United States, including staff that work at its advanced nuclear reactor development and new reactor technology units.

Three of the seven Russian military officers indicted on Thursday were charged in a separate case brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office for their role in hacking activities designed to influence the 2016 presidential election. All seven of the defendants are presumed to be in Russia, which does not have an extradition treaty with the United States.