THE Dutch spy service broke into computers used by a powerful Russian hacking group and may be sitting on evidence relating to the breach of the US Democratic National Committee, reports say.

Respected daily newspaper Volkskrant and TV current affairs show Nieuwsuur said hackers working for the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service penetrated the computers used by the group, often nicknamed Cosy Bear, in mid-2014 and watched them for at least a year, even catching them on camera.

Dutch officials declined to comment.

Interior minister Kajsa Ollongren said she was “very happy that we have good security services in the Netherlands that do their work well. I can’t say anything about this case that has been published”.

The Dutch spies are said to have used their access to help oust Cosy Bear from US State Department computers in late 2014, with American spies sending cake and flowers to show their gratitude.

Cosy Bear was later identified as one of two Russian government-linked hacking groups that broke into the DNC ahead of the 2016 presidential election. The other is usually called Fancy Bear, but the groups are thought to work independently.