Russia’s eight-year hacking campaign targeting the private conversations of British MPs, civil servants and public figures is said to have been orchestrated by a shadowy cyber unit known as “Center 18”.
The unit, part of the famous Federal Security Service (FSB), was allegedly led by intelligence officer Ruslan Aleksandrovich Peretyatko and bodybuilder Andrei Stanislavovich Korinets.
Today the Foreign Office took the unusual step of naming the two men, who they said, successfully compromised the private emails and conversations of high-profile politicians and ministers.
During “sustained” attempts to interfere in UK politics, which will only increase next year when the country goes to the polls, information was stolen from hundreds of politicians, civil servants, civil servants, NGOs and journalists.
Peretyatko and Korinets now face sanctions, with US officials offering $10m (£7.9m) for any information on the couple.
Intelligence officer Ruslan Aleksandrovich Peretyatko and bodybuilder Andrey Stanislavovich Korinets allegedly headed a cyber operations unit known as the 18th Center for Information Security.
The unit is based at the Federal Security Service (FSB), whose Moscow headquarters is shown in the photo.
The pair are accused of using a group called Star Blizzard to hack senior politicians, including infiltrating the personal email account of Liam Fox, the former trade minister, to steal classified documents related to trade talks between the United States and the United Kingdom.
They are also said to have carried out the 2018 hack of the Institute for Statecraft, a UK think tank whose work included efforts to defend democracy against disinformation, and the more recent hack of its founder Chris Donnelly, whose account was compromised. since December 2021. .
The group has also widely attacked universities, journalists, the public sector, NGOs and other civil society organisations, many of which play a key role in UK democracy.
The Star Blizzard hacking group, also known as Cold River and Callisto Group, is said to have attacked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2016.
The group is also believed to have broken into emails belonging to former British MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove.
The head of MI6 between 1999 and 2004 told Reuters last year there had been a “Russian operation” to obtain emails from him and other Brexiteers unhappy with Theresa May’s failure to negotiate an exit deal. of the EU between August 2018 and July 2019.
He said: “I am well aware of a Russian operation against a Proton (email) account which contained emails to and from me.”
On a website titled ‘Very English Coop d’Etat’, Russian hackers published private emails they claimed were from former spy chief Baroness Gisela Stuart, prominent Brexit campaigner, pro-Brexit historian Robert Tombs and other supporters of Britain’s divorce from the EU.
The emails outline a short-lived plan to create a campaign group for a hard Brexit in the summer of 2018 amid growing opposition to May’s proposed Checkers deal at the time.
Today the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the unusual decision to appoint Korinets (pictured) and Peretyatko.
A photo of Korinets on social media shows him wearing a baseball cap and a black jacket.
The FSB, which is headquartered in a large building in Moscow, is the successor agency to the KGB and was briefly headed by Vladimir Putin in the 1990s.
The 18th Center for Information Security operates within the FSB and is responsible for domestic operations, but also works abroad.
Their work includes manufacturing malware for use against foreign targets, according to a report to the US Congress, and bosses bring in civilian hackers to bolster their effectiveness.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) today summoned the Russian ambassador to express the UK’s deep concern about the unit’s activities, while insisting that the decision to appoint its key members would help thwart its activities.
Foreign Secretary David Cameron said: ‘Russia’s attempts to interfere in UK politics are completely unacceptable and seek to threaten our democratic processes.
‘Despite their repeated efforts, they have failed.
‘By sanctioning those responsible and summoning the Russian ambassador today, we are exposing their malign attempts at influence and shedding light on yet another example of how Russia chooses to operate on the global stage.
“We will continue to work together with our allies to expose Russian covert cyber activity and hold Russia accountable for its actions.”
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden said: ‘As I warned earlier this year, state actors and the “Wagner-style” sub-state hackers they use to do their dirty work will continue to attack our public institutions and our democratic processes.
‘We will continue to report this activity, raise our defenses and take action against the perpetrators.
‘Online is the new frontline. We are taking a whole-of-society approach to ensure we have the robust systems and cutting-edge skills needed to resist these attempts to undermine our democracy.’
Home Secretary James Cleverly said: ‘An attack on our democratic institutions is an attack on our most fundamental British values and freedoms. The UK will not tolerate foreign interference and, through the National Security Act, we are making the UK a more difficult operating environment for those who seek to interfere in our democratic institutions.’
The group is also believed to have broken into emails belonging to former British MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove.
They also hacked into the personal email account of Liam Fox, the former trade minister, to steal classified documents relating to US-UK trade talks.
Foreign Office minister Leo Docherty issued a statement in the House of Commons this morning telling MPs: ‘Russia’s attempt to interfere in political and democratic processes through cyber or any other type is unacceptable.
‘I can assure the House that we have identified the targeting of parliamentary colleagues, we have engaged with the victims both through the National Cyber Security Center and the parliamentary authorities.
‘This Government will continue to expose and respond to malignant cyber activity, holding Russia accountable for its actions.
‘To that end, the UK has designated two individuals under the UK cyber sanctions regime following a thorough investigation by the National Crime Agency into the Institute for Statecraft hack. By doing so, we send a clear message that these actions have consequences.
“This morning the FCDO summoned the Russian ambassador to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to convey this message.”
Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy described the details as “an attack not just on individuals but on British democracy, on all sides of this House and on the public we represent”.