Latest news with #AnthonyDeutsch
Irish Independent
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Russia-backed group hacked into networks of police and NATO, say Dutch authorities
Anthony Deutsch A previously unknown Russian hacking group was behind attacks last year on the networks of the Dutch police, NATO and several European countries, Dutch intelligence agencies said on Tuesday. The group, nicknamed Laundry Bear by the security agencies, was most likely supported by the Russian state, the Dutch General Intelligence Agency and Military Agency said in a joint letter to parliament.
The Star
27-05-2025
- The Star
Russia-backed group hacked into networks of police and NATO, say Dutch authorities
FILE PHOTO: A man holds a laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this illustration picture taken on May 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -A previously unknown Russian hacking group was behind attacks last year on the networks of the Dutch police, NATO and several European countries, Dutch intelligence agencies said on Tuesday. The group, nicknamed Laundry Bear by the security agencies, was most likely supported by the Russian state, the Dutch General Intelligence Agency and Military Agency said in a joint letter to parliament. "The cyberattacks against Dutch institutions are part of a larger international cyber threat posed by the hacker group," they said in a statement detailing the findings of their probe into the incidents. The group operated under the radar until it was discovered conducting a hacking operation in September 2024 in which it successfully gained access to the confidential details of Dutch police officials, it said. Laundry Bear also conducted cyber-espionage against companies that produce high-end technologies that Russia has difficulty accessing due to Western sanctions over the Ukraine war, it said. "The investigation also reveals that Laundry Bear has been responsible for cyber operations against Western governments and other institutions since at least 2024," the statement added. It said the group had sought to get hold of information related to "the procurement and production of military equipment by Western governments and Western arms deliveries to Ukraine". (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch;Editing by Helen Popper)
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia is ramping up hybrid attacks against Europe, Dutch intelligence says
By Anthony Deutsch and Bart H. Meijer THE HAGUE (Reuters) -Russia is increasing its hybrid attacks aimed at undermining society in the Netherlands and its European allies, and Russian hackers have already targeted the Dutch public service, Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD said on Tuesday. "We see the Russian threat against Europe is increasing, including after a possible end to the war against Ukraine," MIVD director Peter Reesink said in the agency's annual report. "In the Netherlands, we saw the first (Russian) cyber sabotage act against a public service, with the aim of gaining control of the system. It was thwarted, but it was the first time." The MIVD did not specify what public service had been targeted. The agency also found a Russian cyber operation against critical infrastructure in the Netherlands, possibly as preparation for sabotage, the report said. Western countries have in recent years said hybrid threats by Russia and China were becoming increasingly more aggressive. Such threats could include everything from physical sabotage of critical infrastructure to disinformation campaigns, espionage and cyber attacks in a bid to influence or undermine society, the agency said. It repeated its warnings of Russian entities mapping infrastructure in the North Sea for espionage, and acts of sabotage aimed at internet cables, water and energy supplies. Britain's foreign spy chief accused Russia in November of a "staggeringly reckless campaign" of sabotage in Europe, ranging from repeated cyber attacks to arson. Moscow has denied responsibility for all such incidents. Beijing routinely denies allegations of cyber espionage. CHINA THREAT China also still poses a serious threat to Europe through its support for Russia's war efforts and aggressive stance towards Taiwan, the report said. It was continuing its efforts to gain Western knowledge through investments and espionage, especially in the Dutch semiconductor industry, it added. The MIVD said last year Chinese cyber espionage was more extensive than initially thought, targeting Western governments and defence companies. Reesink reinforced the message shared by European allies that the military needed to be scaled up. "If you look at the speed at which Russia is increasing its military complex, its equipment, its artillery, it's by far much faster than we do in Europe, even in the U.S. So that creates a sort of window of vulnerability for us," he said. He emphasized the "need to speed up and make sure that we have the same pace as they have to at least be deterrent enough."
The Star
22-04-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Russia is upping hybrid attacks against Europe, Dutch intelligence says
THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Russia is increasing its hybrid attacks aimed at undermining society in the Netherlands and its European allies, and Russian hackers have already targeted the Dutch public service, Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD said on Tuesday. "We see the Russian threat against Europe is increasing, including after a possible end to the war against Ukraine," MIVD director Peter Reesink said in the agency's annual report. "The conflict in the grey zone between war and peace has become a reality. More and more, state actors try to undermine our society with hybrid attacks. Russia especially ... is increasingly prepared to take risks," he said. The MIVD said it had for the first time detected an attack by Russian hackers against the digital operating system of an unspecified Dutch public service last year. It said it had also found a Russian cyber operation against critical infrastructure in the Netherlands, possibly as preparation for sabotage. Hybrid threats span everything from physical sabotage of critical infrastructure to disinformation campaigns. The MIVD described such attacks as combining traditional acts of espionage with cyber attacks and other attempts at influencing and undermining society. The agency repeated its warnings of Russian entities mapping infrastructure in the North Sea for espionage, and acts of sabotage aimed at internet cables, water and energy supplies. Britain's foreign spy chief accused Russia in November of waging a "staggeringly reckless campaign" of sabotage in Europe, ranging from repeated cyber attacks to Moscow-linked arson. Moscow has denied responsibility for all such incidents, saying accusations against it are baseless and unproven. (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch and Bart Meijer; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Exclusive-U.S. funding freeze threatens investigations of alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine
By Anthony Deutsch and Dan Peleschuk THE HAGUE/KYIV (Reuters) - The Trump administration's freeze of foreign funding has begun impacting an international effort to hold Russia responsible for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, according to eight sources and a Ukrainian document seen by Reuters, halting dozens of jobs and tens of millions of dollars in aid. Ukraine has opened more than 140,000 war crime cases since Moscow's February 2022 invasion, which has killed tens of thousands, ravaged vast swathes of the country and left behind mental and physical scars from occupation. Russia consistently denies war crimes have been committed by its forces in the conflict. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. U.S.-funded international initiatives such as the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group for Ukraine (ACA) have provided expertise and oversight to Ukrainian authorities. Kyiv has been praised by its Western partners for probing alleged crimes while the war is still raging. At stake are six U.S.-funded projects at the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) valued at $89 million, according to a Ukrainian document on the U.S. funding and cuts seen by Reuters. Funding for at least five of those projects has already been frozen, according to five sources directly involved, who cited interruptions in payments. The affected worked on issues ranging from the preservation of evidence from the battlefield to anti-corruption initiatives and reform of Ukraine's prosecution system. Two of the listed projects were funded by USAID, three by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement and one directly by the Department of State, the document showed. Of that funding, $47 million was directly allocated to war crimes accountability, the document showed. The impacts on war crimes programmes described by the sources and the document have not previously been reported. Nearly all of the sources spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue. While the programmes do not directly impact Ukraine's frontline efforts to fend off Russia's onslaught, supporters say they represent the best chance of extensively documenting reported battlefield atrocities in Europe's biggest conflict since World War Two, now grinding toward a fourth year. Reuters could not establish whether the affected projects were specifically targeted or victims of the broad sweep of the 90-day freeze on foreign aid Trump announced upon taking office on January 20. The White House, the State Department and Ukraine's prosecutor did not respond to requests for comment about the impact and purpose of the cuts. NO MONEY TO PAY STAFF Among the impacts of the spending freeze, nearly 40 experts provided through Georgetown's International Criminal Justice Initiative, ACA's lead implementing entity, have stopped working, according to two of the sources. ACA and Georgetown's press office did not respond to a request for comment. Two members of the programme declined to comment. On its website, ACA, which is also funded by the EU and Britain, said it has provided more than 150 experts with "decades of experience" to help Ukrainian prosecutors. One source involved in supplying outside legal experts to Ukraine said: "Some partners have no more money to pay their staff." Another source said an advisor in the PGO was put on leave and a project to provide support for the victims of conflict-related sexual violence had also been suspended. Ukrainian non-governmental organisations have also been impacted. Representatives from two such groups have told Reuters that their work collecting evidence from victims and documenting damages could be impacted, or had already been frozen. "Our continue to exist, but we will look for alternative sources of independent funding and accordingly will continue working in this field, just in a limited way," said Oleksandr Pavlichenko of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, an alliance of Ukrainian human rights groups. The group has halted the work of its regional offices in Ukraine after the U.S. freeze cut around 75% of its annual budget. The head of another Ukrainian organisation that assists in the collection of war crimes evidence and trains legal professionals said the group also had to partly cease operations. If new funding is not found, jobs will be cut in three months, the source said, requesting anonymity to speak frankly on a sensitive issue that has not yet been resolved. SYSTEM IN PLACE Since the first weeks of Russia's invasion, Ukraine's international partners have made accountability for alleged Russian crimes a key part of their support for the war-torn country. Yevhen Krapyvin of the Centre for Policy and Legal Reform in Kyiv said U.S. support, particularly from USAID, had been vital earlier in the war. For example, it funded an 800-page handbook for judges adjudicating war-crimes trials for the first time. Foreign experts have proven valuable because of the know-how they brought from previous conflicts, he added. Ukrainian authorities had since gained valuable experience as a result of the infrastructure Kyiv's foreign partners put in place, he said, downplaying the negative impact of the funding cut on Ukrainian efforts to investigate and prosecute alleged crimes. "Right now, this system is more or less stable, and the experts are there," Krapyvin said. "Of course, you always want more of them, but this system has been built." However, a loss of U.S. leadership in the effort could have wide-ranging effects, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue. "Perpetrators are emboldened and we all lose," the source said. Many NGOs have come to rely on American assistance and people are "in shock," said a source at a Ukrainian advocacy group with a long history of war-crimes related work, who also asked not to be named to speak about sensitive matters. The freeze has also impacted the planned launch of an American-funded case management system that is part of a broader effort to help modernise Ukraine's judiciary, said Leonid Sapelnikov, deputy head of Ukraine's State Judicial Administration, in charge of digitisation. Cleaning up and strengthening the judicial system is central to Kyiv's bid to join the European Union. "If the (case management) system works, we expect that the effectiveness of the judiciary will increase and it will be possible to hear more cases," Sapelnikov said, adding that Ukraine would seek alternative sources of funding for the project, without giving details.
