"At Microsoft, we've seen recent activity targeting democratic institutions in Europe," security chief Tom Burt wrote in a blog post. "Attacks are not limited to campaigns themselves but often extend to think tanks and non-profit organizations working on topics related to democracy, electoral integrity and public policy and that are often in contect with government officials," he added.
Among others, Microsoft found the hackers targeted 104 employee accounts from well-known groups the German Council on Foreign Relations, the Aspen Institutes in Europe and the German Marshall Fund (GMF) between September and December 2018. The hackers deployed so-called "spearphishing" tactics - using targeted fake emails or websites to try and harvest workers' credentials and gain access to computer systems.
Among the targets were employees based in EU members Belgium, France, Germany, Poland and Romania as well as non-member Serbia. "Organizations and individuals need to be aware and prepared that malign forces, including sophisticated state actors, seek to exploit them in the digital space," GMF president Karen Donfried said in a blog post.
"It is more important than ever that we be vigilant to protect our democracies from foreign interference, including online." The Old Continent faces a string of votes in the coming months, including European Parliament elections in May, parliamentary polls in Estonia, Finland and Belgium and presidential ballots in Slovakia, Ukraine and Lithuania.