German air traffic control under attack by pro-Russian hackers

The German Air Traffic Control (DFS), which is responsible for air traffic control, has been the target of a hacker attack. This was reported by Spiegel.

A spokesman for the DFS, located in Langen near Frankfurt am Main, stated on Sunday, “We are now taking protective measures due to the hacking of our office communication. We are trying to minimize the impact of the incident.”

The DFS emphasized that the hacker attack did not affect air traffic, and it continues as usual.

According to DFS, the attack took place last week. It is not yet known whether the data was accessed. The DFS spokesman explained, “We have informed the security authorities.”

The DFS emphasized that the hacker attack had no effect on air traffic and that it would continue to operate normally. The attack became public knowledge thanks to a report by Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR).

According to BR’s information, the attack was associated with the hacker group APT28, also known by the pseudonym “Fancy Bear.” APT28 has been attacking commercial enterprises, such as defense, energy supply, and logistics companies, for several years.

German media reports link the attack to the hacker group APT28, also known as Fancy Bear. APT28 has been targeting commercial companies for several years, including defense, energy, and logistics companies.

Western governments classify the group as a long arm of Russian intelligence services. In Germany, the group became publicly known in 2015 due to a hacker attack on the Bundestag.

Last spring, Germany recalled its ambassador from Russia for consultations after Berlin accused Moscow of cyberattacks on defense and aerospace companies, as well as the ruling party.

Berlin said that the attacks, which began two years ago, targeted the ruling Social Democratic Party of Germany as well as companies in the logistics, defense, aerospace, and IT sectors. 

According to the German authorities, the APT28 group, also known as Fancy Bear, exploited a vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook to hack into email accounts.

On May 3, the EU condemned Russia’s malicious cyber campaign against Germany and the Czech Republic. “The European Union and its Member States, together with international partners, strongly condemn the malicious cyber campaign conducted by the Russia-controlled Advanced Persistent Threat Actor 28 (APT28) against Germany and Czechia,” the EU statement said.

NATO also expressed its solidarity with Germany and the Czech Republic in relation to the cyberattacks carried out by a Russian hacker group.