Russian accused of cyberattack on CDU by Kiesewetter.
The CDU announced a cyberattack on their network over the weekend. Mr. Roderich Kiesewetter, a security expert for the party, believes that Russian hackers are responsible. This is a continuation of cyberattacks targeting the SPD from the previous year. These attacks are part of a larger campaign in Europe, according to investigators.
Kiesewetter, a Bundestag member, stated, "Following the hack on the German parliament by the hacker group Fancy Bear, which is believed to have ties to the Russian military intelligence service GRU, parties such as the SPD and now the CDU are in the crosshairs of Russian cyberattacks. This should worry us all."
Cyberattacks are a form of hybrid warfare employed by Russia and China against liberal democracies. According to Kiesewetter, the attacks are not solely about stealing data; they could also be used for disinformation campaigns, discrediting institutions or individuals, or causing damage. He added, "Particularly when attacks target political parties, especially during election periods, this is a serious matter."
A week before the European elections, the CDU has been a victim of a cyberattack. The CDU is working with German security authorities and other external experts to investigate the issue. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution and the Federal Office for Information Security have started separate investigations.
CDU General Secretary Carsten Linnemann condemned the attack as outrageous in an interview with Neue Westfälische. Thuringia CDU state chairman Mario Voigt expressed, "Whoever carried out this attack considers the CDU a threat to their interests. The CDU is indeed a threat to all those who want to weaken Europe - whether they speak Russian, Chinese, or any other language." The party will pursue the matter to the end, unintimidated.
The incident has drawn serious concerns from government officials. The Interior Ministry confirmed a serious breach of the CDU's network. However, no information is available regarding the extent of the damage or the attacker due to ongoing investigations. A ministry spokesperson remarked, "The nature of the attack suggests a very professional actor." It's unclear yet if any sensitive data was impacted.
Concerns of serious damage to critical infrastructure or disruption of daily-used devices have grown. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution was set to issue a warning to all German Bundestag parties on the same day. This highlights the importance of combating digital and hybrid threats, especially before elections.
Last year, the SPD was also targeted in a cyberattack. The party headquarters' email accounts were compromised. The German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution pinned the blame on a group under the Russian military intelligence service called APT28. This group has been active in cyber-espionage since at least 2004. APT28 is believed responsible for the large 2015 cyberattack on the Bundestag, and for attacking the Democratic Party in the US before the 2016 presidential election.
The attack on the SPD was part of a broader campaign in several European countries. Other victims included German companies in the fields of logistics, defense, aviation and space, and IT services. The Foreign Office summoned a high-ranking Russian diplomat in early May and recalled the German ambassador in Moscow, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, for consultations in Berlin for a week. The SPD's attack was attributed to an unknown security flaw at Microsoft at the time.
Bitkom, the Digital Association, has raised concerns of an increasing number of such attacks from China and Russia. 80 percent of companies experience attacks like data theft, espionage, or sabotage. 46 percent of these attacks can be linked to Russia, while 42 percent are linked to China. Some attacks are motivated by financial gain, whereas others are aimed at causing the maximum possible damage to critical infrastructure like energy supply and hospitals.
CDU politician Voigt highlighted that the attackers also seek to undermine trust in the state's security measures. He stressed, "Our political institutions are strong, and our elections are not in danger of being affected by cyberattacks, but the threat level is higher than ever before." Voigt emphasizes that "state-sponsored cyberattacks from abroad are trying to undermine public confidence in their governments using fake news and disinformation to influence elections."
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The SPD and now the CDU are both under suspicion of cyberattacks from Russian hackers, according to Kiesewetter. These attacks are part of a larger campaign of cybercrime and cyberwarfare targeting liberal democracies, including Europe. To combat these threats, German authorities and external experts are collaborating to investigate and protect critical infrastructure.
