Czech Minister confronts Russian Ambassador amid cyber threats

Russian Ambassador Alexandr Zmiyevsky (Photo: facebook.com AmbRusCz)

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Czechia, Jan Lipavský, summoned the Russian Ambassador Alexandr Zmiyevsky over cyberattacks on institutions and critical infrastructure, according to České noviny.

The head of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the Russian Federation to refrain from this action, which contradicts UN standards and its own commitments.

It was previously reported that the Russian-controlled APT28 group, associated with the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate military secret service, has been targeting Czech institutions with cyberattacks since last year. The attacks exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook.

Lipavský noted that Russia’s deliberate attack was aimed at seriously threatening the security and stability of Czechia.

Interior Minister Vít Rakušan said that Czechia has long been observing an increase in Russia’s activity in cyberattacks and cyber espionage, registering dozens of attacks on infrastructure. According to him, most of the threats are not made public and are mitigated at the initial stage.

Background

Earlier, NATO members expressed concern over Russia’s recent actions related to cyber activity on the territory of Alliance countries.

Later, Germany summoned the Russian ambassador over a series of cyberattacks targeting members of the ruling Social Democratic Party, as well as against the defense and technological sectors of the German economy.