Poland's intelligence agency monitors disinformation about political mobilization.
A rumor is going around that Poland's state news agency PAP is calling for the mobilization of 200,000 citizens to be sent to Ukraine. However, this information is false, and could possibly have been planted by hackers.
PAP's Internal Security Agency (ABW) and Digital Ministry reacted quickly to this false report. PAP's spokesman, Jacek Dobrzynski, stated, "Due to the likely Russian cyber attack on the Polish Press Agency and a false report about a supposed mobilization in Poland."
The bogus news article claimed that 200,000 Poles would be mobilized for deployment in Ukraine, with the announcement to be made by Prime Minister Donald Tusk on July 1st.
The article was taken down from PAP's website a few minutes after it was published on a Friday. It then reappeared and was removed again.
Not One-Off Incident
This is not the first instance where a news agency has been targeted in a similar manner. In April, hackers released two fake stories on the Czech news agency CTK's website, claiming that the Czech intelligence service had stopped an assassination plot against the newly-elected Slovak President Peter Pellegrini.
The relationship between Poland and Russia has become increasingly tense due to Russia's ongoing war on Ukraine. The Polish government alleges that Russia is behind deliberate disinformation campaigns, acts of sabotage, and violence, as well as hacking attempts carried out under the direction of Russian intelligence services.
On Monday, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski implemented restrictions on the movement of Russian diplomats in his country in response to what he called a "hybrid war" by Russia against the EU, including Poland. Russia then threatened "countermeasures".
In mid-May, Tusk had already announced that he would be beefing up Poland's intelligence services in response to Russian sabotage attempts and arson attacks. He also warned of various ways Russian interference could affect the European Parliament elections.
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The false report about military mobilization in Poland, potentially stemming from a Russian cyber attack, has raised concerns about escalating tensions between Poland and Russia, given Russia's ongoing attack on Ukraine. This incident serves as a reminder of previous cyberattacks targeting news agencies, such as the one in April where fake stories were released on the Czech news agency CTK's website.
