European intelligence agencies say investigations into Russian interference now take up as much time as counterterrorism work.
A pro-Russian hacking group, Noname057(16), claimed responsibility for a cyberattack that disrupted France’s national postal service during the Christmas rush, according to French prosecutors. The attack, a distributed denial of service operation, knocked La Poste’s central computer systems offline, preventing package tracking and disrupting online payments at its banking arm.
France’s domestic intelligence agency, the DGSI, took over the investigation as the disruption hit the postal service at its busiest time, affecting a workforce of more than 200,000 people. Noname057(16) has a history of targeting Ukrainian media and government websites across several European countries, including Poland, Sweden, and Germany.
Although international police dismantled much of the group’s infrastructure during Operation Eastwood in July, the hackers resumed activity within days.
The postal attack followed other recent cyber incidents in France, including a breach affecting the Interior Ministry and a suspected plot to remotely control systems on an international passenger ferry. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez strongly suggested Russian involvement in these incidents, though no official attribution has been made.
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