Illegal activities have been reported. - CDU Suffers Cyber Attack; Office for the Protection of the Constitution Intervenes
One week prior to the European elections, the CDU has suffered a severe cyber-attack, as reported by government insiders. This incident is being viewed with considerable concern. The Interior Ministry verified the occurrence of a significant cyber-attack on the CDU's network. Details about the scale of the damage or the attacker are currently unknown, owing to ongoing investigations. "The nature of the attack indicates a highly skilled hacker," remarked a representative.
It is yet undetermined if any sensitive data was compromised. A CDU representative remarked, "In light of the situation, the IT infrastructure was disconnected and quarantined as a precaution." The CDU's website cdu.de remains operational.
Connections with the Interior Ministry and Other Security Agencies
Authorities have revealed that Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) had already communicated with CDU President Friedrich Merz. The CDU is now in close collaboration with German security agencies and external cybersecurity specialists. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution and the Federal Office for Information Security are conducting investigations.
The Interior Ministry's spokesperson stated that the Office for the Protection of the Constitution would issue a warning to all parties in the German Bundestag on Saturday. "Our security organizations have raised all defense measures against digital and hybrid threats and are evaluating the potential risks. This highlights the necessity of such measures, particularly before elections."
Previous Hacking Incident Affected the SPD
The SPD endured a cyber-attack in 2022. On this occasion, email accounts at party headquarters were infiltrated. The German government attributed the incident to a unit of the Russian military intelligence service. The Foreign Office summoned a prominent Russian diplomat in early May 2022 and ordered the German ambassador to Moscow, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, back to Berlin for consultations, which lasted for a week.
The SPD was not the only party to experience this attack. German corporations in the logistics, defense, aviation, and space, and IT services industries were also targeted. The party asserts that this attack was achieved through an unidentified security loophole at the software company Microsoft.
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- The Landsmannschaft in the CC Sorabia-Westfalen in Münster, a CDU affiliate, expressed their concern over the cyber-attack and its potential impact on the upcoming European elections.
- The Interior Ministry, in collaboration with the Landsmannschaft, is working closely with security agencies and cybersecurity specialists to investigate the cyber-attack and secure the CDU's network.
- The SPD, along with other German parties and corporations, have also been victims of cyber-attacks in the past, highlighting the need for increased digital protection and collaboration between parties and government agencies.
- Various political parties in Germany, including the CDU and SPD, agree that the protection of the constitution and the Internet is essential, and they emphasize the importance of cooperation between parties and the government to combat cyber threats.
- The Ministry of the Interior, in its efforts to protect the constitution and the digital sphere, plans to issue a warning to all the parties participating in the European elections, urging them to be vigilant against potential cyber-attacks.
- Cybersecurity is an issue that transcends party lines and requires a united effort from all political parties in Germany and the European Union to ensure cyber attacks do not interfere with the democratic process and the protection of sensitive information.
