Piracy of Emmanuel Macron’s campaign in 2017, cyberattack of the TV5 World channel in 2015, attempts against sports entity linked to the organization of 2024 Olympic Games in Paris … The French authorities have, in an unprecedented manner, denounced Tuesday, April 29, the involvement of the Russian military intelligence service in a series of incidents occurring in recent years. “The Russian military intelligence service (GRU) has been deploying a cyberoffensive operating mode called Apt28 for several years.denounced Jean-Noël Barrot, the chief of French diplomacy in a message posted on X. He has targeted a dozen French entities since 2021 ”.
If the accusations made with regard to Russian operators are not new on the part of the French authorities, this is the first time that the internal allocation process has led to a public speaking directly pointing the responsibility of a third -party intelligence service. It is above all a diplomatic signal at a time when Paris is intended to be at the forefront of European mobilization in support of Ukraine, at the cost of recurring tensions with Russia. “These destabilizing activities are unacceptable and unworthy of a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. They are also contrary to the United Nations standards in matters of behavior responsible for states in cyberspace, to which Russia has subscribed ”, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement.
In passing, the French authorities reveal the name and the location of a GRU unit contributing to Apt28 whose existence, if it was known to certain experts, has so far never been publicly mentioned: Unit 20728, based in Rostov-sur-le-Don and from “166e Information research center ”. A way for France to demonstrate their intelligence capacities and their intentions vis-à-vis Russian pirates.
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