Russia ‘targets’ UK systems Britain

The Russian military intelligence service that dispatched two agents to launch a chemical attack in Salisbury has already targeted vital infrastructure in Britain, government sources have revealed.

Moscow’s GRU spy network has carried out a series of attacks on the UK’s energy networks, telecommunication systems and media organisations as part of the Kremlin’s secret cyber war.

Last year, Ciaran Martin, boss of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), revealed that since his organisation was set up in October 2016 it had seen Russia repeatedly target vital British infrastructure as part of its attempts to ‘‘undermine the international system’’.

Staff at NCSC, part of Government Communications Headquarters, had responded to more than 600 ‘‘significant incidents’’ from 2016 to 2017.

Cyber security at British energy sectors including electricity, gas and water companies had been tested by Russia as it looked for weaknesses in their online networks.

Although attempts to fully gain access were not successful, it was feared that agents were harvesting information that could prove invaluable if a concerted effort was made ever to turn the lights out.

Now, government sources have revealed that agents trained under GRU have been responsible for this recent increase in Russian cyber espionage

The cyber unit of the GRU is based in a huge Soviet-era block in the northwestern district of Khodinka, where Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov are believed to have been briefed before heading to Britain in March to try to kill Sergei Skripal, a double agent who was part of a spy swap in 2010.

British authorities revealed last week that Boshirov and Petrov, two senior GRU agents, were responsible for the attempted assassination of Colonel Skripal, who had also served in the GRU.

They were said to have posed as businessmen before arriving in Britain on March 2, staying at an East London hotel and making two trips to Salisbury to launch the Novichok attack.

Skripal, 67, and daughter Yulia, 33, survived after coming into contact with the Novichok agent smeared on the door of his Salisbury home.

However, Dawn Sturgess, a British woman, later died after she sprayed the chemical on to her wrists, having picked up the discarded perfume bottle that had contained the chemical.

The GRU has been linked to a series of cyber attacks around the world. Notably, the United States charged 12 GRU agents with involvement in the hacking of Democratic Party national committee emails before the 2016 presidential election, which resulted in leaks from Hillary Clinton’s campaign, and a huge boost for Donald Trump.

Meanwhile, the GRU was blamed for unleashing a malware code called NotPetya on a series of Ukrainian targets. About 300 companies were affected and it was estimated that one in 10 of the country’s computers were hit.

Earlier this year, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson warned that Moscow could cause ‘‘thousands and thousands’’ of deaths in Britain if it launched a successful cyber attack, crippling infrastructure and energy supply.

GRU agents are also thought to be training military groups in Syria. –