Russian Military Intelligence Members Indicted Over Ukraine Cyberattack

The United States expanded its hunt connected Thursday for Russia’s astir elite cyberwarriors, indicting 5 members of the country’s subject quality bureau for attacks connected Ukraine and American companies successful the run-up to the penetration of Ukraine successful 2022.

The State Department and American allies besides offered a reward of up to $60 cardinal for their arrests; the reward for Osama bin Laden and different leaders of Al Qaeda aft the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks was $25 million.

The attacks, known arsenic “Whisper Gate,” connected Ukraine’s authorities agencies, NATO countries and American firms were fundamentally the opening salvos successful the penetration of Ukraine. They were intended to cripple the government, bring down a large outer communications web and scare disconnected NATO nations from coming to Kyiv’s aid. But the attacks were countered by U.S. Cyber Command and firms similar Microsoft, Google and Amazon, who moved the operations of the Ukrainian authorities to the unreality and kept the state moving successful a singular integer defence operation.

“The Whisper Gate onslaught successful January of 2022 could beryllium considered the archetypal changeable of the war,” said William J. DelBagno, the F.B.I.’s peculiar cause successful complaint of the Baltimore tract office. “The cybercriminals sent a connection with their malware to, quote, beryllium acrophobic and expect the worst. A period later, Russia physically invaded the country.”

The probe to instrumentality down the Russian hackers, officials said, was called “Operation Toy Soldiers.” The Russian G.R.U. operatives were portion of Unit 29155, officials said, a group that for years has worked to destabilize Europe.

In the hours earlier the penetration successful February 2022, it was Microsoft’s informing to the White House astir a gathering integer storm, meant to unsighted Ukraine, that provided different informing that tanks were getting acceptable to roll.