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CybercrimeAttacks against Switzerland, WEF, Eurovison: 3 hackers hunted
Three major members of a pro-Russian group responsible for massive attacks on our country are identified. Mandates have been issued.
The pro-Russian group Noname057 (16) illustrates its attacks by images of bear or drawings of little friendly bear …
XThe public prosecutor of the Confederation announces this Wednesday that it has identified three alleged criminals, which would have played a major role in the wave of cyberattacks launched against Switzerland in June from last year. International arrest warrants have been issued to be arrested.
DDOS type attacks (distributed denial-of-service) had been perpetrated against websites from different federal authorities in June 2023, including that of Parliament. They had been temporarily unavailable or difficult to access. The cyber attacks had been claimed by a pro-Russian group “noname057 (16)”.
The public prosecutor of the Confederation (MPC) had opened a criminal procedure for “data deterioration” and “constraint”, but the attacks had continued, particularly during media events, just to defray the chronicle.
In its press release, the MPC quoted attacks during the video speech by the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky before the Federal Assembly (June 15, 2023), for a visit by former federal advisor Alain Berset in Ukraine (November 25, 2023), during the WEF, World Economic Forum (in January 2024 then again last January), at the peace conference Bürgenstock (June 5/16, 2024) or on the last Eurovision song competition, in Basel, in May.
BCV, Geneva, Vevey
Let us add that last January, the same group had attacked the Zurich cantonal bank, the BCV as sites of communes and German municipalities. Then, a few days later, the cities of Geneva, Sierre or Vevey as the portal of the canton of Schaffhouse.
During the investigations, notes the MPC, more than 200 Swiss websites attacked by the group have been identified, “including several sites of federal, cantonal administrative units or operators of critical infrastructure”.
All of these attacks were therefore signed Noname057 (16), “a group of pro-Russian activists who, since the start of the war in Ukraine in March 2022, has led DDOS attacks against many Western countries which, according to him, displays a pro-Ukrainian position”.
During the investigation, launched by Fedpol and then conducted internationally under the coordination of Europol, “three alleged key people belonging to this group” were identified. But not stopped, for the moment. It was against these three people that the public prosecutor of the Confederation issued arrest mandates.
The Europol and Eurojust agencies also announced this Wednesday the dismantling of the “botnet” of this nonamen group057 (16), which had not raised in Switzerland but also targeted with significant infrastructure in Europe.
“During a day of action on July 15, the Botnet, which used hundreds of computer systems around the world, was dismantled and several suspects were identified, whose main instigators residing in the Russian Federation,” said European agencies in a statement, reports AFP.
The operation involved twelve countries and led to the arrest of two people, one in France and one in Spain, they said. In total, the authorities of different countries issued seven arrest terms, targeting six Russian nationals.
