Ukraine announced it had launched a cyberattack that disrupted a Russian Defense Ministry server, leading to a temporary halt in its internal communications.
The attack specifically targeted a crucial communications server, as confirmed by Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, GUR. However, these claims have not been independently verified, and there has been no immediate response from Moscow.
The cyberattack led to a disruption in the flow of information among the Russian Defense Ministry’s units that relied on the affected server located in Moscow, according to GUR. The agency also noted that the cyber operation was still active as of Tuesday evening.
Simultaneously, Russian officials reported a technical glitch on Tuesday that impacted numerous internet sites throughout the nation, without specifying if the Defense Ministry’s site was among those affected or if there was any connection between this incident and the cyberattack.
The Ministry of Digital Development acknowledged the problem was associated with the DNSSEC infrastructure but stated it was resolved by Tuesday night, albeit with a caution that further “disruptions” might occur for a while.
The technical issues were reported in various regions, including Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and the Republic of Tatarstan, as per the state agency Ria Novosti.
Microsoft recently confirmed that it has been the target of a cyberattack that resulted in the breach of the email accounts of some of its employees.
The company said in a blog post that its security team discovered the attack on 12 January 2024. The attack was carried out by a group called Midnight Blue, which Microsoft said is a Russian state-sponsored hacking group.
