Russian Military Intelligence Behind Cyberattack on SPD

The German Federal Government has identified a unit of the Russian military intelligence service GRU as the perpetrator of a cyberattack against the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). This was announced by Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during an official visit in Adelaide, Australia, and she promised appropriate responses to this incident. The investigations of the attack, which hit the SPD at the beginning of last year, were coordinated by the Federal Foreign Office and are now completed. Baerbock described the attack as "completely unacceptable" and made it clear that it will not remain without consequences. Email accounts of board members of the SPD were targeted by a cyberattack, which apparently was made possible through a previously unknown vulnerability in Microsoft software. There were indications that data could have been leaked due to the attack. The competent authorities attributed the cyberattack to group APT28, which, according to investigations thus far, is controlled by the GRU. The group is also known under the alias "Fancy Bear" and has already been targeted by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) for its global activities in cyber espionage, disinformation, and for propagandist purposes. Moreover, it has been linked to attacks on institutions and parties in the past. Diplomatic steps such as summoning the ambassador of the responsible country are part of the usual measures in response to such an incident. EU sanctions against individuals or organizations, including travel bans and the freezing of assets, are also conceivable. Furthermore, these attacks seem to be part of a broader strategy that also targets institutions and companies in the energy supply, information technology, defense, as well as the aerospace industry in various European countries. The North Atlantic Council of NATO has already expressed concern about the increase in Russian cyberattacks, which pose a direct threat to the security of Alliance members.