Pro-Russian hacker group UserSec announces cyber campaign targeting NATO member states
The move comes in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with various hacking outlets targeting Western governments and organisations offering strategic and military support to Ukraine.
UserSec posted a message on their official Telegram channel, declaring their intention to launch a massive defacement of NATO countries’ websites, according to threat intelligence platform FalconFeedsio. In the announcement, the group emphasised that multiple countries would be affected simultaneously and expressed their support for Russia.
‘We do not receive orders from the state. UserSec is a group working for the good of Russia. We are attacking Europe, the West, all NATO countries,’ the group posted on Telegram.
UserSec also announced it was joining forces with KillNet, another well-known pro-Russian hacking group that started its campaign against NATO last month. The announcement read, ‘Be on the lookout for something juicy to begin tomorrow, May 18th, with KillNet.’
UserSec has previously supported KillNet’s operations, joining their DDoS campaign against the US medical sector. Another Russian-linked group, Anonymous Sudan, has also pledged support for campaigns against NATO members. UserSec claims to have collaborated with Anonymous Sudan in supporting KillNet attacks.