VANITY: IT Experts Please Help Sort Out Intel Claims of Russian Hack

https://www.threatconnect.com/blog/does-a-bear-leak-in-the-woods/ ^

[butterdezillion]

It keeps being said that US intel says Wikileaks is from Russian hackers. The article at https://www.threatconnect.com/blog/does-a-bear-leak-in-the-woods/ gives some of the "evidence". I know nothing about this, but if some Freepers with knowledge could weigh in on the validity of this assessment I would appreciate it.

Please use language appropriate for a computer idiot. =)

[butterdezillion]

Clickable link: https://www.threatconnect.com/blog/does-a-bear-leak-in-the-woods/

[butterdezillion]

Specifically I’m wondering if there’s a way they can know the IP address a message originated from, without there being any proxies, gates, etc.

[Mariner]

A truly sophisticated state actor, or expert private party, could make it look like the hack came from anywhere they wanted.

Your computer included.

[old curmudgeon]

The claim tat Russia is to blame is typical off on a tangent to divert our attention from the real problem.

The real problem is: Mrs. Clinton, do you deny writing those emails and if so how do you explain the fact that the other parties to the email exchange have not denied them?

[ConservativeMind]

Honestly, we can't know it was the Russians with the way the information gets to Wikileaks. We know an open WiFi connection on Amtrak helped someone get the Podesta emails, though.

[Mariner]

"Specifically I’m wondering if there’s a way they can know the IP address a message originated from, without there being any proxies, gates, etc."

Yes, every SMTP relay in the chain has record of where it's inbound mail comes from.

But somebody would have to have admin credentials to each of those servers to track it back to origin.

[butterdezillion]

So this company that did this analysis - would they have a way to check if the emails really came from the France IP that is associated with the Russians?

Then again, who knows whether the analysis that they’re posting has genuine data either. They could change stuff.

But if what they have is genuine, would their analysis and conclusions be possible and/or correct?

[butterdezillion]

I agree. It’s all a distraction. But they keep coming back to it. And I keep thinking it’s not like sophisticated hackers would leave fingerprints all over. But this analysis seems to claim just that. So what’s the deal with that? Are they just making stuff up, and IT people all know they’re making it up, or what?

[butterdezillion]

So pretty much any hacker could have gotten Podesta’s emails, given the open WiFi connection? Or what is the significance of the open Wifi connection on Amtrak?

[butterdezillion]

Amtrak - so that was done in the US? Somebody inside the US helped get the leaks to Wikileaks? I’m so stupid on this stuff. How would they have a France IP address using an open WiFi connection on Amtrak?

[libertylover]

The real problem is: Mrs. Clinton, do you deny writing those emails and if so how do you explain the fact that the other parties to the email exchange have not denied them?

Yes, I thought both Chris Wallace and Trump blew it by letting Mrs. Bill Clinton pivot away.

And it's absolutely ludicrous that they let Mrs. Bill Clinton claim that the Russians are all-powerful with respect to the hacked DNC emails but are not competent enough to hack the secret and top-secret emails from her non-secure server. Sheesh!

[GOPJ]

No one’s willing to put their name on this rumor... it’s all ‘un-named sources’ which could be the janitor in the Pentagon.

I suspect democrats are lying about this because the lie works for them... and the lie is spread because the press gives democrats passes when they lie.

James Comey’s in the tank for the Clinton’s - if he knew anything ‘for sure’ he would come forward and scream it at the world.

[ThunderSleeps]

Agreed, if all they have is IP addresses... Those can be easily spoofed in a packet.

You just have to get the traffic going through a router you control. The router makes it look like the victim system is being accessed from a given IP address - any IP address you pick. The router handles the translation to the real address and sends the packets literally anywhere in the world.

Even MAC addresses can be spoofed.

[old curmudgeon]

I think it is just an act of desperation made under the pressure of public scrutiny.

In other words, you have to say something.

Like the video to explain Benghazi.

I wish Trump had said...”Hillary, you just made things much worse on yourself because if the Russians really did do it, it means that you gave the Russians information that is vital to our national security, information so top secret that the press, the public and even high ranking members of congress are not allowed to see."

Actually she is burying herself.

Many complain that our national elections take too long. Thank God they do take so long. Just look at what we have learned that we would never have known if the election was a 90 day thing.

[opus1]

We’ve watched this ‘rumor’ being set up for a few years. Now it’s useful so it’s front page news backed up by ‘experts.’ No technical expertise required to know Russians not involved.

[rlbedfor]

Inside job.

[kevao]

I still think Seth Rich had something to do with at least some of these leaks.

[Mr. M.J.B.]

ThreatConnect HQ is in Arlington; they are “former” IC people.

Technical assessment isn’t necessary to evaluate their work product...

[butterdezillion]

The exposure of the absolute corruption is encouraging.

But then, it is discouraging that even in the face of all this evidence, the American public by and large doesn’t care. Nor do the politicians. It’s all a shake-down. Everybody in it for him/herself.

I vacillate between hope/fight and disgust/hopelessness over the fate of America. This election is a judgment of America’s people. Either we will care about the truth, or we will die at our own hands. Nerve-wracking.