UK accuses Russia over cyber attacks
The Foreign Office has accused Russia of orchestrating a series of “indiscriminate and reckless” cyber attacks in Britain and across the globe. The Government’s cyber security arm has identified 12 “cyber actors” that were fronts for the GRU, the military intelligence unit responsible for the attempted assassination of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury. Theresa May pledged last month to wreak revenge on the GRU and “shine a light” on its methods in the wake of the Novichok attack.
THE Kremlin has orchestrated a series of “indiscriminate and reckless” cyber attacks in Britain and across the globe, using the same military intelligence unit behind the Salisbury nerve agent attack, the Government said yesterday.
In an official statement released last night, the Foreign Office said the Government’s cyber security arm had identified 12 “cyber actors” that were fronts for the GRU, the agency responsible for the attempted assassination of Sergei and Yulia Skripal.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said the attacks included hacking confidential medical records held by the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA), which was investigating Russian-state doping; and a British television station, whose sensitive emails were “accessed and content stolen”.
The NCSC also officially blamed the GRU for the hacking of the Democratic National Committee in 2016, which had a bearing on the US presidential election; and a ransomware attack that disrupted a metro system and airport in Ukraine in 2017.
The group behind the hacking of WADA – called Fancy Bears – was one of a dozen groups named by NCSC. That attack led to the disclosure that cyclist Sir Bradley Wiggins received certificates allowing him to take otherwise banned substances for the treatment of asthma before races.
The British television station that was hacked between July and August 2015 has not been identified. But one source said it had kept sensitive information on politicians and celebrities
that could be valuable to the Kremlin. The 11 other “cyber actors” are Cybercaliphate, Pawnstorm, Voodoo Bear, Tsar Team, APT 28, Sofacy, Sednit, Cyber Berkut, Blackenergy Actors, Strontium and Sandworm.
The unmasking of the GRU’S activities was part of a strategy to dismantle, undermine and ultimately “degrade their activities”, a source claimed.
Theresa May pledged in September to wreak revenge on the GRU and “shine a light” on its methods in the wake of the Novichok attack.
The Government said it had made the judgment that the Kremlin was ultimately responsible for cyber attacks.
The Foreign Office said: “This campaign by the GRU shows that it is working in secret to undermine international law and international institutions.”
It added: “These attacks have been conducted in flagrant violation of international law, have affected citizens and have cost economies millions.”