Pro-Ukrainian hacktivists disrupted Russian banking services after targeting a major telecommunications supplier.
A group calling themselves “Cyber Anarchy Squad” announced the news on Twitter over the weekend.
“On June 8, Ukrainian anarchist cyber forces blew up Infotel, which provides telecommunications services to hundreds of other companies, a quarter of which were Russian banks. ” said. “As a result of the attack, their customer fell into a severe depression. And what next? Wait…”
For more information on Ukraine’s cyberattack on Russia, see Ukrainian DDoS Russia’s Vodka Supply Chain.
Service provider JSC Infotel facilitates access to the interbank system Automated Electronic Dialog System (ASEV).
Security researcher Kevin Beaumont reported the news on Mastodon, claiming that the Ukrainian group “remotely wiped” Infotel’s infrastructure.
An update from the company for partners and customers reposted by Beaumont confirms the news.
“We would like to inform you that some of our network equipment was damaged as a result of a large-scale hacker attack on JSC Infotel’s network.
Beaumont said the company had finally restored BGP routing after a two-and-a-half day outage, but the router failure continued to hamper customers.
According to Ukrainian media, the incident left Russian banks and credit unions unable to access the banking system and make payments.
The hacktivist operation appears to have been timed to coincide with the much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive.
This is not the first time the Russian banking system has been targeted by pro-Ukrainian hacktivists.
In December 2022, the country’s second-largest bank announced that it had suffered what is said to be the largest DDoS attack in history.
Pro-Russian hacktivists have also been active during the war, targeting not only Ukraine but also allies.
Cyberattacks against British financial institutions have increased by 81% since the invasion of Ukraine, according to a January report.
