The US National Guard is set to deal with "Russian hackers" prior to the midterm elections in Congress that will take place in November this year, Bloomberg reported.
West Virginia's Republican Secretary of State Mac Warner has tasked the state's National Guard, which usually deals with the outcomes of natural disasters, such as floods and hurricanes, to face another kind of a disaster — alleged future Russian interference in the upcoming elections.
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A number of top officials in other US states have also been looking into the idea, expecting to create cyber teams comprised of local National Guard members and volunteers with advanced technology skills.
Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump signed a memorandum directing the Defense Department to support the Homeland Security Department in securing the US border with Mexico with the assistance of the National Guard.
Following the decision, Arizona deployed some 225 Army National Guard troops to its portion of the US border with its southern neighbor.
Earlier this year, Mike Pompeo, then-Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), alleged that Russia was "clearly responsible" for hacking activities interfering in the 2016 US election, adding that Moscow may now attempt to interfere in the upcoming congressional midterm elections in November.
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In 2017, the US Congress launched four separate probes into the alleged Russian meddling during the election, including the investigations run by the Senate Intelligence and Judiciary committees and the House’s Intelligence and Oversight panels.
Moscow has repeatedly denied the allegations of meddling and collusion, while US President Donald Trump described the probe as the "single greatest witch hunt" in US history.