France Accuses Russia of Cyber Attacks Targeting National Security

France has officially accused Russia of conducting a series of cyber attacks aimed at destabilizing the nation. The French government has pointed fingers at the Russian military intelligence unit known as APT28, which is believed to be behind these malicious operations.

The cyber attacks have reportedly targeted a range of French institutions and significant events, including the Olympic Games held last year and the presidential elections in 2017. French authorities have expressed their condemnation of these actions, emphasizing the threat posed to public services, private enterprises, and even sports organizations involved in the preparation for the upcoming 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

According to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, approximately a dozen French entities have been subjected to such cyber incursions since 2021. These attacks are part of a broader pattern of interference that Russia has employed in previous years, notably during the sabotage of the TV broadcaster TV5Monde in 2015 and attempts to disrupt the electoral process in France during 2017.

In response to these ongoing threats, France has pledged to collaborate with its international partners to combat the detrimental cyber operations attributed to Russia. The French government has declared that such destabilizing tactics are intolerable and unbecoming of a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.

France is not alone in facing these threats, as numerous European nations have also reported being targeted by Russian military cyber efforts. APT28 was previously implicated in a significant cyber attack on the German Bundestag in 2015 and has been connected to a more recent attack on the headquarters of the Social Democratic Party of Germany in 2023.