>> welcome to the institute and use the moment to advertise our upcoming events

next week and with the evolution fiercest lung -- associate professor a former wilson center fellow with university of maryland. at the cannes institute for publications. also read part two to focus on russia and that focuses on the ukraine. to today's event to know about russian hackers and as an

expert with that journalist based in moscow with that russian independent website working for the biggest russian news website at the time. and with the publication and with that refugee problem with cybersecurity in the islamic state. getting an award in journalism and the stories have been cited in the new york times and other respected publications. those that are the most prestigious award.

and also a fellow here at the moment we are pleased to have such a strong representation here. >> it is great to see you here. and then to get the news about russia. so now in december after three

years to write these narrative stories about the asus influence and link to russia. and with those groups but the last two years reading the stories of the russian hackers. and for example this is an

article from around the country for the russian cyberarmy. so then there were some stories. and over the last two years but sometimes with the company that provides services and in

2015 leaving russia. and the story about the russian cyberweapons. but in 2015 and with that definition but to bring in the

minister of defense. but. [inaudible]

but then with those services may be two months and then to change the name to work in the government company because there is the case with the interest of the russian state and those services in a public space and that maintenance

from which we can understand it has its own cyberarmy. but but then to conduct cyberwar. in those two years of my researchers and with these corporations that this is

professional criminal affliction. and that selection and those where those programs they compete with each other. and this is popular with the security guide and also and from russia but to instigate

beyond those programmers by the military. to train those specialist and then to communicate with them. but then to prepare the course. but teaching those computer sciences and in order to

release to support the american way of life. but the other way but in 2013 the russian defense minister so that defense minister published and one video, thank

you. ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ so that video that cybersoldier and then we give

you the opportunity to have a comfortable accommodation in the spring of 2014 with that confrontation and with the technical universities or programmers or engineers without knowledge of software

and then to explain with those method of cyberattacks that they have to walk off of the cyberattacks. one of those documents indicate and with the military as a representative to not tell anyone about them.

and not only to put yourself aside. also but isn't in english but with the cyberarmy from the minister of defense and with

that development of special software. and with those criminals. and is a good example but then the computer could not play those videogame so needed something else to do.

>> but together eventually they were interested but the interest-only group. and with this cybersecurity and have those different

levels and now in a few years to become the best cybersecurity in russia and those from american prisons. then to be in those crazy conditions to get that information to them. and they said in those safe houses across the country and

knows about a few cases one of the russian cyberafter the cold war was the intelligence service to extract information. but there are hopes and then to be put in a room and is

confident with the cyberweapons that could get out of control. because of personal correspondence and for example the critical infrastructure but usually those groups by those cyberspecialist but it was from those who were not

afraid. but with those criminals selections but those cybercrews and cybersecurity members with that $15 million from the russian bank but then they were thrown into moscow

with the war chest with the diamond but altogether with about 15 different regions that the experts for this investigation and with those group leaders recruited so they failed to mention with

the market layoff. every morning except on the weekends every morning except on the weekends. [inaudible conversations]

[inaudible conversations]

[inaudible conversations] the leader of this group because of the banks. and in particular and also with the united states.

some of those said that she is insane. and with some publicity. but in my book to the similar's to spy novels. thank you.

[applause] >> this is a fascinating window into that world i'm sure the audience has questions but for one you made a distinction between the professional selection and those that work as a criminal selection are they complete the separate? >> with that professional connection and then to work with the government.

>> what are the chances you said that the cyberweapons will go out of control in the future but those very people trained to work on the russian government? >> russia will have that story against the russian government as the group of hackers that now they are all in jail and

with that group in russia but because if you work in russia you will be discovered. >> that is what they want to find the cybersecurity. . . he for. . . . .

have a lot of -- i know that casper ski have a lot of guys inside, they work in kaspersky

and have possibility to make some decisions in this company. >> thank you. mike'ser in, u.s. senate staff. i wonder if you can talk about the -- probably one of the more well-known hacks in russia which was mr. medvedev's permanent account and i -- personal account and also got peskov if i'm not mistaken. anything known about who might have done that and an example of real world effects where that played into the opposition mobilization and protests against the government in thank you. >> you say, in 2011, yaw.

>> recently. medvedev? >> i believe. [inaudible question] -- palaces and so on. >> ah. [inaudible question] >> yeah. medvedev accounts is hacked by -- and once a question is about how does operate with oppositions? >> well, -- [inaudible question] the real world effect of when that became public, known as a motivation towards antigovernment protests. we haven't seep that level of protest since 2011.

>> there's some groups, i think some of these groups are working whose government who -- which have desks from administration, president, ap in russia, like his name is -- in russianed administration, he is the main figure by monetary internet and he in some investigations told that he was a man who did this -- make this decision to hack some positions like -- some

other guys in russia. the hacker's name who hocked some opposition in -- is his name is -- now i think he is in jail in germany. >> i'll just fill out that question. if i understood it correctly, maybe just a followup question, the video that you referring to made when they sent -- that the people sent a drone to look over medvedev's estate and all that, that's not hacking. their research was not based on hacking. it was based on journalistic, forensic search of records of medvedev that were available online. but i'm wondering, are there -- i don't know. are there hackers who work

specifically maybe with the russian opposition? is that something that happens? >> maybe. >> just to clarify. they sent a drone but also hacked mr. medvedev's personal account, including the orders he had made for clothes and sneakers and so on and able to corroborate pictures of him at public forums wearing those exact items and the addresses where they were shipped to, which was not public information. it was obtained through hacking. >> sir, i not know who maybe. >> so let see. two more questions on that side. let's take those -- okay. >> hi, i'm very and a graduate student at georgetown. my question might be basic but you said if you knack russia you

will either join the government or go to jail. do you find that the hackers that are sent to jail just like the adage, there's no such thing as a drug-free prison, there's no such thing as a prison without hackers, do you think it's an effective solution to jail or does it have any real impact on their impact there? whether the hackers have any effect on the curbing the hacking situation. >> this is a big question of how jail -- how people don't help people. in recent years, we have -- in russia we have a lot of stories when hackers going to jail, and

we have a stories when hackers -- is not published stories when hackers work in -- on security cells because they want to go into jail. >> because they -- they want to? because they are -- >> they don't want. >> they don't want to. >> yeah. >> what happens if they good to jail? can they maybe continue hacking? >> no. >> they don't have access. >> yeah. >> right there in the back we have two questions. >> thank you, good morning. could you clarify, please, when the government outreach to hackers began, you gave a couple different dates and authorities. i know this will be a tough one but can you just give us an estimate -- since that date, how many hackers the government has

recruited and who they're primary targets are? thank you. >> ten years ago i talked about -- as i know, there's some of 300, 400 people working around the country, and to your question about main target, don't know because they can -- like in this american election hacking, we can talk here about the situation of the hackers. this is maybe the espionage around every country, every guy, every journalist around the --

i -- myself is a target because from things i know from ap investigation. journalists expect political people. >> i'm sorry. when would you say this government recruiting really began with intensity? >> began? >> yeah to get these folks to help. >> three years, i think. >> thank you. >> okay. let's see. right -- there was one question in the back hat i promised to take and then move forward from there. >> my name is john. i have a -- you mentioned both the criminal and the professional hacking organizations, how they recruited. are the type of hacking activities -- you may have talked about it and i missed it -- for example, like, for certain type of hacking activities more oriented from the criminal-based hacking

organizations rather then professional. for example, the criminal base may be a good type to use for certain activities, to provide plausible deniability which harder to trait back to the government than if you're able to trace it back later to, like, governor-sponsored type entity. >> as i know, professional science controls, they popular -- and the selection criminal hackers were not these attacks when -- because they need to have a lot of time to explore and find abilities. >> okay. i think we had right there.

>> thank you very much for your preparation. i am research fellow another johns hopkins university. i have brief question. my only e-mail was hacked in 2014 by cyber. could you explain more about this organization because after it was hacked so my e-mails were released and it wasn't even a story on tv so probably they work for the government. can you focus on specific their work in ukraine? do they try to check the ground and then just spread it to other countries, and cyber backup, please. >> yes, as i think is -- you will be a target. yes? phishing? >> what kind of an attack. >> phishing attack? >> guest: no, they just corrected and i watched the story, and it's interesting

because we did some project and national endowment for democracy and it was like at the beginning of the revolution but it had nothing to do with this. it was a year withit started. had nothing to do but they tried to connect is as we were the net was behind financial of our organization and we were among those who organized -- well, it's a way that is famous but still. >> basically they broke -- >> they kicked -- they broke it and used this mail so it was interpreted in their understanding it was felt, of course, but like basic -- >> thank you. >> yeah. cyber beckett is famous part of russian, i think. they hacked a lot of ukrainian

journalists and some reporter whos -- reporters who work in -- i think you know him, the expert from conflicting intelligence organization who investigate russian connections. cyber beckett is a part of russian hacking groups but i don't know what -- this is a defensive -- minister of defense or now -- sorry. >> i'm curious, as you talk about it, do do these groups sort of receive a team assignment? your group is going to work on

ukrainian journalists and bloggers. are they kept kind of disconnected and separate? because the more you connect, the easier the information will leak out. how does it work. >> all russian cyber army and this groups are really separated. no one building where they're all hackers sit and work all day. as president putin say, told the directors of universities in beginning of last year, the hackers who can -- >> so, that recruiting picture we saw, the happy military guy sitting, it doesn't work that way. >> no. >> all right. right there. the lady in the middle.

>> hi. thank you for your presentation. i actually have couple of questions, very briefly. first, this is something you alluded to, especially through criminal recruitment, there's obviously the question of the allegiances of the hackers. if the most control seems to happen through the point of the gun, right? in order to do that there are any high-ranking fbi officers or hierarchy that you have got absence of who are experts in hacking themselves in order to be able to know what these hackers are doing some how does that supervision happen? because to me the -- even though they're working on the project of hack for the russian government, they're very-day-old also create some sort of additional insurance, i presume. so i don't know if you have got absence of that and how that works but just curious.

and the second is, are you mostly focusing on russian hackers located in russia itself or all over the world and if you have got absence of geographic scope of where they are because you don't have to be in same room to do the work they do. thank you. >> when i say russian hackers, i mean the guys who type in russian -- in ukraine or belarus and pakistan, i think. can you repeat the first question, please? >> the hierarchy. how are they supervised that work? you have to be an expert, right? >> they stay experts, yeah. i think you know that have the

-- named -- where -- i dent know how it's -- >> do it in russian. >> maybe center of information security. a lot of experts who are good in this and some of this guys, as some investigations working of -- with hackers, who are, as we know, working with this guy, his nickname is forp and his -- have a lot of hacking big ground from early '90s, i think.

then in the middle of 25th 25th year he became expert. >> so, the reason the hackers often sit, as you said in ukraine or kazakhstan, is is that to create a coverup. >> no, because they bomb here. >> these are -- okay. >> not because they work in ukraine. >> i think we had question right there let go to the -- we have three questions in a row here. let go one after the other. >> thank you. i want to come back the presentation and spoke about schedules. were established by minister of defense. right? and it was advertised as a special department, and those who received a good technical education would be enrolled in different research on behalf of

national defense. computer-based research and then so on. you say that they possibly may take part in hacking attacks as well. the rest of your speech you spoke mostly about the hacking attacks of those belong -- the question do is you know it was proved that different hacker attacks or different cyber threats were produced by those who -- research? >> really difficult question because it's not really -- it's really difficult to root attack. really difficult and -- we hear,

we can only talk about motivation, not talk about attacks from minister or defense of fsby. >> what do you mean -- >> motivation of russian security services, some political experts or hacking some e-mails really big fact. >> okay. there was a lady behind there. >> thank you. i have a question about process. so you're a journalist, working with medusa, which is based, if i'm not incorrect in latvia. outside of russia. so i wonder how -- what is it like for you to work as a journalist on these topics and what do you ski as -- do you see as the roll of the periphery

countries as a base, perhaps are, for russian independent journalism. >> thank you. i guess medusa is based in latvia, but i live in moscow, as a -- because we writing about russia and if we don't live here, we don't understand anything. this topic is really difficult in russia but this topic is difficult in every country, i think. most of time of my reporting on this term is wait, wait, wait, wait for some guy who talk me to some to tell me that he need to talk with this guy or --

>> i think it's a difficult topic for everyone but from what we hear about what happens in russia, how hard it is to be an independent journalist there, do you fine that this -- do you have a feel it's actually dangerous for you to report this topic? >> no. if you go to chechneya and if you have meetings with radical groups and lgbt but this is -- i don't know what they think about this investigation and only response is this guy from minister of defense at the top, then who called me and said that you don't need to investigate, and finally a response from the

government. >> we had a question right here. if you could wait for the mic. >> hello. thank you for being here. i'm constantine. my question is, it seems like it's very polarized in terms of when people think about russia's meddling or supposed meddling in election andow write for i guess an opposition media source. do you think based on evidence, what is your opinion based on evidence of the role of -- what was the role, the extent of the role of russian meddling in this election from dnc hacking to i think now you have the news about the supposed dossier on trump. so what is your opinion as somebody who writes for an opposition source and yet obviously in russia, people who

are supporting putin, they think it's just ridiculous, or preposterous. so what its your open view of russia's extent of involvement or meddling? >> thank you. i don't really like to talk about this because you have opinion about this and you read a lot of articles about this, but my opinion will be in fact what i know and what i investigate, that this is part that we have not 100% of russian hackers hacked hillary clinton e-mails. but of course russia and have

information for -- to do this, russian cyberarmy, russian hackers who are -- this my opinion. >> i'll also say -- i don't know what you would say but we have had -- the publisher of medusa and the possibly would have objected to medusa being in the position media. think they just say they're simply good media, good publication, but in the current landscape we look for the opposition, they would say they're. no question right there. >> hi. jeff hahn, a protective intelligence analyst. much of the conversation about russian hackers has been dominated about the election hacking, profession warfare and propaganda. over the last coup of year wed have seen an increasing number

of hacks in western superukraine which are remarkably sophisticated and growing which are targeting infrastructure and appear to be almost swan -- someone testing how to cause massive destruction on a kinetic level and shutting down infrastructure. last year ukraine was hate by crash override, which disrupted the iranian program. my question is, while we're seeing these disinformation and propaganda on the surface is russian also investing heavily in kinetic cyber weapons which could be deployed whenever they feel is necessary? >> i think yes. >> okay. thanks for your brevity. now have time for one more question. let's go to this question right here. >> thank you for your good work, sir. can you clarify -- because of

the science squad dragons are they -- squadrons are the reporting to the diu or other agencies in. >> it's a separate squadron who -- which in minister of defense or squadron who is some other part of minister of defense. >> so they're separate from the gru. >> no. one squadron have in gru, other squadron is working with other department. a lot of -- a lot of squadrons. >> i think we have just come to the conclusion of the meeting. i want to thank -- we all agree

we'll be looking forward your book very much. >> thank you. [applause] [inaudible conversations]

tonight, state of the state address from new jersey governor chris christie and then allege investigation of russian hackers and later a discussion about law enforcement and civil rights from the null convention of the muslim public affairs council. >> in his final state of the state address new jersey governor chris christie talks about his administration's accomplishments, including reforms to the criminal justice system, property taxes and economic revitalization in camden and atlantic city. he also discussed the response to super storm sandy in 2012. his successor, democrat phil murphy will be sworn in on tuesday.