SolarWinds hackers linked to known Russian spying tools, investigators say

FILE PHOTO: SolarWinds Corp banner hangs at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on the IPO day of the company in New York, U.S., October 19, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid//File Photo/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - The group behind a global cyber-espionage campaign discovered last month deployed malicious computer code with links to spying tools previously used by suspected Russian hackers, researchers said on Monday.

Investigators at Moscow-based cybersecurity firm Kaspersky said the "backdoor" used to compromise up to 18,000 customers of U.S. software maker SolarWinds closely resembled malware tied to a hacking group known as "Turla," which Estonian authorities have said operates on behalf of Russia's FSB security service.