EGN NEWS DESK
The Sandworm group is among the Kremlin’s most infamous cyberthreats, typically working within the shadows. Western intelligence beforehand tied the group to a 2015 assault that took down Ukraine’s energy grid, and to a different disruption of the Ukrainian energy grid in 2023. It is a part of Russia’s GRU navy intelligence division, in line with the U.Okay. authorities.
The warnings come as European governments examine the rupture of two vital undersea telecoms cables connecting EU international locations — within the newest incident of “hybrid” sabotage, disruption and digital assaults seen on Europe’s japanese border with Russia since Moscow invaded neighboring Ukraine in 2022.
It provides to the sector’s woes after this week’s sharp fuel value hike following an announcement by Russian large Gazprom that it was chopping off flows to high Austrian importer OMV on account of a contractual dispute.
Sandra Joyce, head of menace intelligence at Google’s Mandiant cyber division, first raised the priority with high European officers on the Tallinn Digital Summit in Estonia Tuesday.
“That’s what they’re concentrating on this morning as we’re sitting right here,” Joyce mentioned of Sandworm’s continued hacking makes an attempt on Europe’s power grid.
Google mentioned in April that Sandworm, additionally known as APT44 or Seashell Blizzard, “stays a formidable menace to Ukraine,” and that “to this point, no different Russian government-backed cyber group has performed a extra central function in shaping and supporting Russia’s navy marketing campaign.”
