FBI says it has sabotaged hacking tool created by elite Russian spies

The FBI has sabotaged a suite of malicious software used by elite Russian spies, U.S. authorities said Tuesday, providing a glimpse of the digital tug-of-war between two of the world's cyber superpowers. Senior law enforcement officials said technical experts at the FBI had identified and disabled malware wielded by Russia's FSB security service against an undisclosed number of American computers – something they hoped would deal a death blow to one of Russia's leading cyber spying programs.

The FBI has sabotaged a suite of malicious software used by elite Russian spies, U.S. authorities said Tuesday, providing a glimpse of the digital tug-of-war between two of the world's cyber superpowers.

Senior law enforcement officials said technical experts at the FBI had identified and disabled malware wielded by Russia's FSB security service against an undisclosed number of American computers – something they hoped would deal a death blow to one of Russia's leading cyber spying programs. "We assess this as being their premier espionage tool," one of the U.S. officials told journalists ahead of the release. He said the American government hoped the operation would "eradicate it from the virtual battlefield."