Latest news with #pro-Russian
14 minutes ago
- Politics
Pro-Russia cybercrime network targeted by European law enforcement
LONDON -- Law enforcement officials in Europe said they had coordinated the dismantling of an international pro-Russian cybercrime network, arresting two members, issuing warrants for others in Russia and disrupting the group's main infrastructure. The network, known as NoName057(16), was alleged to have targeted Ukraine and countries that supported Kyiv in its fight against the Russian invasion, Europol said in a statement Wednesday. The group was alleged to have recruited volunteers via "pro-Russian channels, forums, and even niche chat groups on social media and messaging apps." "Individuals acting for NoName057(16) are mainly Russian-speaking sympathisers who use automated tools to carry out distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks," Europol said in a statement. Two people were arrested, one in France and one in Spain, officials said of the 3-day operation. Seven other arrest warrants were issued, including six by Germany for alleged hackers living in Russia, Europol said. "The group, which professed support for the Russian Federation since the start of the war of aggression against Ukraine, executed multiple DDoS attacks during high-level political events in Europe," the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, or Eurojust, said in a statement posted to social media. The FBI in the United States was among the law enforcement agencies who took action against the group, Europol said. Europol and Eurojust, the European Union's top law-enforcement agencies, coordinated the operation, which they called "Eastwood." They were joined by authorities from Czechia, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands. The hacking group was estimated to have mobilized some 4,000 users to support their operations, Eurojust said. Europol and other law enforcement agencies sent some 1,000 alleged supporters messages notifying them of "their legal liability," Europol said. Investigators said they disrupted more than 100 servers used by the group, along with a "major part" of the group's main infrastructure. Law enforcement officers searched two dozen houses throughout Europe and questioned people in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and Spain, according to Europol. The pro-Russian group was accused of a series of hacks, including attacking banks and government offices in Sweden, along with perpetrating waves of cyber attacks in Germany and elsewhere. The attacks in Germany targeted some 230 organizations and businesses, including 'arms factories, power suppliers and government organizations,' according to Eurojust. "In Switzerland, multiple attacks were also carried out in June 2023, during a Ukrainian video-message addressed to the Joint Parliament, and in June 2024, during the Peace Summit for Ukraine at Bürgenstock," Europol said.
Japan Today
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Japan Today
Europol-coordinated global operation takes down pro-Russian cybercrime network
Law enforcement agencies from Europe and North America targeted a cybercrime network launching online attacks against Ukraine and its allies. (AP Graphic) By MIKE CORDER A coordinated international operation has hit the infrastructure of a pro-Russian cybercrime network linked to a string of denial of service attacks targeting Ukraine and its allies, the European Union's police agency Europol announced Wednesday. Codenamed Eastwood, the operation targeted the so-called NoName057(16) group, which was identified last month by Dutch authorities as being behind a series of denial-of-service attacks on several municipalities and organizations linked to a NATO summit in the Netherlands. Europol said that the cybercrime network was also involved in attacks in Sweden, Germany and Switzerland. The police agency said the international operation 'led to the disruption of an attack-infrastructure consisting of over one hundred computer systems worldwide, while a major part of the group's central server infrastructure was taken offline.' Law enforcement and judicial authorities from France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and the United States took simultaneous actions against offenders and infrastructure belonging to the pro-Russian cybercrime network, it said. Western officials have accused Russia and its proxies of staging dozens of attacks, sabotage attempts and other incidents across Europe since the invasion of Ukraine, including cyberattacks. The Associated Press is tracking them in a detailed map that shows the breadth of efforts to sow division in European societies and undermine support for Ukraine. As part of the latest operation, judicial authorities in Germany issued six arrest warrants for suspects in Russia, two of them accused of being the main leaders of the group, Europol said. Five of them were identified on Europol's Europe's Most Wanted website. One suspect was placed under preliminary arrest in France and another detained in Spain, Europol said. The Paris prosecutor's office said one person is in custody in France and communications equipment has been seized. No charges have yet been filed. In the United States, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was involved in the operation. The attorney general's office in Switzerland, which is not an EU member country, said in a statement Wednesday that joint investigations between Europol and Swiss federal police helped identify three leading members of the group, which is alleged to have targeted more than 200 Swiss websites. Swiss prosecutors opened a criminal case over the incidents in June 2023, and since then identified several other denial-of-service attacks attributed to the activist group. The attacks included a video address by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the Swiss parliament and the popular Eurovision Song Contest, held in in Basel earlier this year. Europol said members of the cybercrime group initially targeted Ukrainian institutions, 'but have shifted their focus to attacking countries that support Ukraine in the ongoing defence against the Russian war of aggression, many of which are members of NATO.' Law enforcement authorities in countries involved in the operation contacted hundreds of people believed to support the group to inform them of the crackdown and their alleged liability for its actions. 'Individuals acting for NoName057(16) are mainly Russian-speaking sympathisers who use automated tools to carry out distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. Operating without formal leadership or sophisticated technical skills, they are motivated by ideology and rewards,' Europol said. It added that people recruited by the group were paid in cryptocurrency and motivated using online-gaming dynamics like leader boards and badges. 'This gamified manipulation, often targeted at younger offenders, was emotionally reinforced by a narrative of defending Russia or avenging political events,' Europol said. Associated Press writers Jamey Keaten in Geneva, Geir Moulson in Berlin and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
The Star
13 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
EU again fails to approve new sanctions on Russia, diplomats say
FILE PHOTO: Plastic letters arranged to read "Sanctions" are placed in front of EU and Russia's flag colors in this illustration taken February 25, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union failed for a second day to approve a new package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday as Slovakia continued to seek concessions over gas supplies, four EU diplomats told Reuters. Slovakia vetoed the approval of the sanctions during a meeting of EU countries' ambassadors, the diplomats familiar with the talks said. Two of the diplomats said Malta had also raised an objection. Slovakia's government has said it will not approve the sanctions before the country receives more guarantees that it would not be harmed by a separate EU plan to phase out Russian gas by the end of 2027. Those phase-out plans need to be approved in the EU by a reinforced majority of countries, meaning Slovakia alone cannot veto them. However, sanctions require unanimity. "We consider this (Russian energy phase-out) proposal to be a sanction and therefore naturally link it to the proposal for the ... package of sanctions," Fico said, in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen released by his office on Wednesday. "We therefore expect that the vote on the 18th package can only take place after a substantial part of the risks... in the area of gas supplies from 2028 have been resolved." The sanctions would be the EU's 18th package of such measures against Russia over its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Commission, the EU's executive arm, had sought to win Slovakia's support on Tuesday in a letter saying it would work to address its concerns. Fico, in his reply, said talks should continue in order to clarify commitments the Commission would undertake. Slovakia continues to import Russian energy and often takes pro-Russian views on Ukraine. It argues that quitting Russian gas could cause shortages, raise prices and transit fees, and lead to damage claims from Russian supplier Gazprom. Fico said on Tuesday the best solution would be an exemption in the Russian energy phase-out for Slovakia to allow it to fulfill its contract running until 2034. (Reporting by Kate Abnett, Andrew Gray, Jason Hovet; Editing by GV De Clercq and Aidan Lewis)
Straits Times
14 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
EU again fails to approve new sanctions on Russia, diplomats say
Find out what's new on ST website and app. FILE PHOTO: Plastic letters arranged to read \"Sanctions\" are placed in front of EU and Russia's flag colors in this illustration taken February 25, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo BRUSSELS - The European Union failed for a second day to approve a new package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday as Slovakia continued to seek concessions over gas supplies, four EU diplomats told Reuters. Slovakia vetoed the approval of the sanctions during a meeting of EU countries' ambassadors, the diplomats familiar with the talks said. Two of the diplomats said Malta had also raised an objection. Slovakia's government has said it will not approve the sanctions before the country receives more guarantees that it would not be harmed by a separate EU plan to phase out Russian gas by the end of 2027. Those phase-out plans need to be approved in the EU by a reinforced majority of countries, meaning Slovakia alone cannot veto them. However, sanctions require unanimity. "We consider this (Russian energy phase-out) proposal to be a sanction and therefore naturally link it to the proposal for the ... package of sanctions," Fico said, in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen released by his office on Wednesday. "We therefore expect that the vote on the 18th package can only take place after a substantial part of the risks... in the area of gas supplies from 2028 have been resolved." The sanctions would be the EU's 18th package of such measures against Russia over its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Commission, the EU's executive arm, had sought to win Slovakia's support on Tuesday in a letter saying it would work to address its concerns. Fico, in his reply, said talks should continue in order to clarify commitments the Commission would undertake. Slovakia continues to import Russian energy and often takes pro-Russian views on Ukraine. It argues that quitting Russian gas could cause shortages, raise prices and transit fees, and lead to damage claims from Russian supplier Gazprom. Fico said on Tuesday the best solution would be an exemption in the Russian energy phase-out for Slovakia to allow it to fulfill its contract running until 2034. REUTERS
14 hours ago
- Politics
Europol-coordinated global operation takes down pro-Russian cybercrime network
THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- A coordinated international operation has hit the infrastructure of a pro-Russian cybercrime network linked to a string of denial of service attacks targeting Ukraine and its allies, the European Union's police agency Europol announced Wednesday. Codenamed Eastwood, the operation targeted the so-called NoName057(16) group, which was identified last month by Dutch authorities as being behind a series of denial-of-service attacks on several municipalities and organizations linked to a NATO summit in the Netherlands. Europol said that the cybercrime network also was involved in attacks in Sweden, Germany and Switzerland. The police agency said the international operation 'led to the disruption of an attack-infrastructure consisting of over one hundred computer systems worldwide, while a major part of the group's central server infrastructure was taken offline.' Law enforcement and judicial authorities from France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and the United States took simultaneous actions against offenders and infrastructure belonging to the pro-Russian cybercrime network, it said. Judicial authorities in Germany issued six arrest warrants for suspects in Russia, two of them accused of being the main leaders of the group, Europol said. Five of them were identified on Europol's Europe's Most Wanted website. One suspect was placed under preliminary arrest in France and another detained in Spain, Europol said. In the United States, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was involved in the operation. The Paris prosecutor's office said one person is in custody in France and communications equipment has been seized. No charges have yet been filed. The attorney general's office in Switzerland, which is not an EU member country, said in a statement Wednesday that joint investigations between Europol and Swiss federal police helped identify three leading members of the group, which is alleged to have targeted more than 200 Swiss websites. Swiss prosecutors opened a criminal case over the incidents in June 2023, and since then identified several other denial-of-service attacks attributed to the activist group. The attacks included a video address by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the Swiss parliament and the popular Eurovision Song Contest, held in in Basel earlier this year. Europol said members of the cybercrime group initially targeted Ukrainian institution, 'but have shifted their focus to attacking countries that support Ukraine in the ongoing defence against the Russian war of aggression, many of which are members of NATO.' Law enforcement authorities in countries involved in the operation contacted hundreds of people believed to support the group to inform them of the crackdown and their alleged liability for its actions. 'Individuals acting for NoName057(16) are mainly Russian-speaking sympathisers who use automated tools to carry out distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. Operating without formal leadership or sophisticated technical skills, they are motivated by ideology and rewards,' Europol said. It added that people recruited by the group were paid in cryptocurrency and motivated using online-gaming dynamics like leader boards and badges. 'This gamified manipulation, often targeted at younger offenders, was emotionally reinforced by a narrative of defending Russia or avenging political events,' Europol said.
