Six Russians charged in the US with cyberattacks on Ukraine and NATO ahead of 2022 invasion

The United States has indicted six Russian citizens who it said were involved in large-scale cyberattacks against Ukraine and NATO countries ahead of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

This is stated in a statement by the US Department of Justice.

The five defendants are officers of the 29155 unit of Russia’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), the military intelligence of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces: Yuriy Denisov, Vladislav Borovkov, Denis Denisenko, Dmitry Goloshubov, and Nikolay Korchagin.

The sixth defendant is a civilian, Amin Sitgal, previously accused of conspiracy to commit computer hacking and now also of conspiracy to commit fraud using electronic means of communication.

On January 13, 2022, Russian hackers carried out a large-scale cyberattack on the computer systems of dozens of Ukrainian government agencies. The victims of the cyberattack included the Ministries of Internal and Foreign Affairs, Finance, Education and Science, and Energy, as well as the electronic judicial system, the state portal of electronic services, the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine, the State Emergency Service, etc.

As alleged in the indictment, Ukrainian computer networks were infected with WhisperGate malware under the guise of ransomware. In fact, WhisperGate was a cyber weapon designed to completely destroy the target computer and its associated data.

The attackers managed to steal confidential data, including medical records, which they put up for sale online. The hacked websites published a message that reads as follows: “Ukrainians! All information about you has become public; be afraid and expect the worst. This is for your past, present, and future.”

In August 2022, the defendants also hacked into the transportation infrastructure of an unnamed “Central European country” that supported Ukraine. In addition, since at least August 2021, they have attempted to penetrate the secure computer systems of 26 NATO countries, including a federal government agency in the US state of Maryland.

The case is being investigated by the FBI, the Justice Department said in a statement.

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, cyberattacks on EU and NATO states that provide aid to Kyiv have been frequently reported. This year alone, cyber incidents against Germany and the Czech Republic have been reported.