January 9th – A Moscow internet provider, M9 Telecom, fell victim to a sophisticated cyber attack, purportedly orchestrated by a group known as “Blackjack”, linked to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). This strike was in retaliation for a Russian cyber attack on Kyivstar, Ukraine’s largest mobile network operator.
The attackers deleted 20 terabytes of data from M9 Telecom, leaving some Moscow residents without internet services. The source, with direct knowledge of the operation, informed Reuters that this digital intrusion was a precursor to a more substantial cyber attack, intended as “serious revenge for Kyivstar“.
M9 Telecom has not publicly responded to the incident, and its website remained operational despite claims of destruction. The extent of the hack’s success could not be independently verified by Reuters. M9 Telecom’s CEO, Andrey Pavlovsky, declined to comment when reached by phone.
This cyber incident comes in the backdrop of a large-scale attack on Kyivstar last month, attributed to Russian spies. Ukraine’s cyber spy chief, Illia Vitiuk, disclosed that Russian hackers had been inside Kyivstar’s systems for months, causing extensive damage.
In a related development, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, the GUR, reported receiving a substantial cache of classified Russian military data from the Special Technology Centre (STC), a sanctioned Russian entity.
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