Russian national airline Aeroflot faced serious disruptions on Monday, having to cancel over 40 flights due to a cyberattack attributed to a group supporting Ukraine. This incident prompted the Russian prosecutor’s office to initiate a criminal investigation, stating that “supervisory measures were organized” in response to the delays and cancellations at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow.
The prosecutor’s office indicated that the attack stemmed from a failure in Aeroflot’s information systems. A message from a group known as Silent Crow celebrated the act, exclaiming, “Glory to Ukraine! Long Live Belarus!” They claimed to have executed the cyberattack in collaboration with a Belarusian group called CyberParty Sun.
In a follow-up, Aeroflot reported that the cyberattack was a culmination of a year-long infiltration into their IT network, claiming that around 7,000 servers had been compromised. However, they did not present evidence to substantiate this assertion. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed astonishment at the situation, noting that the hacking threat continues to loom over significant corporations serving the public.
Aeroflot acknowledged the disruption, explaining that the failure in their information system had caused service interruptions. They anticipated further adjustments to flight schedules, leading to more cancellations. The airline assured that a team of experts was working to restore normal operations and expressed regret over the inconvenience to travelers.
Russian MP Anton Gorrelkin emphasized that the war is manifesting in many forms, including digital conflicts. He didn’t dismiss the possibility that the responsible “hattivists” may be aligned with hostile nations.
