Romanian Intelligence Joins US Efforts Against 'Prolonged' Russian Cyberattack on the West
The Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) has collaborated with the FBI in a joint operation aimed at thwarting the activities of the Russian military intelligence (GRU), which has been gathering sensitive information across several Western countries.
On April 8, Romanian President Nicușor Dan announced that the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) has taken part in a collaborative operation with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The primary objective of this operation was to halt the activities of the Russian military intelligence, known as the GRU, which has been engaged in collecting sensitive information from a range of Western nations.
According to President Dan, cyber activists linked to the GRU have been executing these attacks with the intent of gathering information pertaining to military operations, government structures, and critical infrastructure. "Russia continues its hybrid warfare against Western countries – only those acting with malicious intent could fail to notice this," Dan remarked. He emphasized the necessity for Romania to enhance its cybersecurity measures and to continue coordinating its actions with Western partners on these issues.
The FBI and SRI have been working alongside partners from Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, and Ukraine, as stated in an FBI press release.
The GRU's efforts have reportedly focused on compromising Wi-Fi routers to deceive individuals into visiting "fake" websites without their knowledge. Through this method, the GRU has been able to obtain passwords, authentication tokens, and other sensitive information that is typically protected by encryption. The press release did not specify how many individuals were affected by this operation, only noting that a "broad range" of victims in the United States and worldwide had been compromised, with those possessing information related to military, government structures, and critical infrastructure being specifically targeted.
"The FBI and its subsequent partners are issuing this message to alert the public and encourage network defenders and device owners to take measures to mitigate and eliminate these attacks," the FBI stated.
At the end of March, the FBI had warned that Russian intelligence was attempting to target individuals with "high intellectual value," including current and former U.S. government officials, through commercial messaging platforms such as Signal.