Russia claims it, too, is victim of state hacking.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced it found “evidence of malicious software designed for cyber espionage in the computer networks of some 20 organizations located in Russia.”

A press release issued Saturday said the security service was still identifying and notifying victims.

{mosads}The spy software is “able to intercept network traffic … take screenshots, turn on web cameras and microphones, PCs and mobile devices, record audio and video, log keystrokes and so on,” said the press release. 

Critics note that the FSB announcement comes just days after the United States accused Russia of using hacked data from the Democratic National Committee to manipulate the presidential election. 

The FSB announcement could be seen as notifying the country or the world that espionage is not uncommon. If the malware is from American intelligence, it could also be seen as a demonstration of what Moscow could reveal if Washington does not back off purported outrage over the DNC hack. 

Though there are no international norms in online espionage, the United States has pushed countries to differentiate between hacking to inflict damage or steal intellectual property and hacking to peak at government operations. The latter is acceptable, at least, in the State Department’s eyes, the former not.