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Russia’s intelligence agency has been accused of attempts to interfere in UK politics and democratic processes through cyber attacks and by targeting high-profile individuals.
The Foreign Office said that the Federal Security Service (FSB), the “successor” to the KGB, has been behind numerous unsuccessful interference attempts.
It identified a unit with the FSB – Centre 18 – as responsible for a range of cyber espionage operations targeting the UK. In particular, hacking activities were conducted by Star Blizzard, a group that is “almost certainly” subordinate to Centre 18.
Russia has a history of election interference, its highly-publicised involvement in the 2016 election between Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton led to then-Prime Minister Theresa May taking extra steps to ensure the security of the following year’s election in the UK.
“While some attacks resulted in documents being leaked, attempts to interfere with UK politics and democracy have not been successful,” the Foreign Office said.
It said that Star Blizzard engaged in targeted attacks on parliamentarians from multiple political parties from at least 2015 through to this year. This included attempts at “spear-phishing”, whereby cyber criminals customise their approach to individuals to gather information about the target, such as their interests, relationships and work responsibilities, to create highly convincing and tailored messages.
In particular, it noted that Centre 18 had been involved in the 2018 hack of the Institute for Statecraft, a UK think tank whose work included initiatives to defend democracy against disinformation, and the more recent hack of its founder Christopher Donnelly, whose account was compromised from December 2021; in both instances documents were subsequently leaked.
The UK has sanctioned two members of Star Blizzard for their involvement in the preparation of spear-phishing campaigns and associated activity that resulted in unauthorised access and exfiltration of sensitive data.
The Foreign Office also summoned the Russian ambassador to express the UK’s deep concern about Russia’s sustained attempts to use cyber to interfere in its political processes.
“Russia’s attempts to interfere in UK politics are completely unacceptable and seek to threaten our democratic processes,” said foreign secretary David Cameron.
“Despite their repeated efforts, they have failed. In sanctioning those responsible and summoning the Russian ambassador today, we are exposing their malign attempts at influence and shining a light on yet another example of how Russia chooses to operate on the global stage.
“We will continue to work together with our allies to expose Russian covert cyber activity and hold Russia to account for its actions.”
