Hackers from Russia attacked the website of the Georgian president and two TV channels. Official website of the President of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, and two opposition Georgian TV channels - Formula and Mtavari — became victims of massive hacker attacks on January 26, 2024.
According to information “Georgian News” and “Echo of the Caucasus”, на данный момент сайт president.ge недоступен. Несколько часов назад посетители страницы сталкивались с изображением черепа и костей, а также надписью: “Hacked by cozy bear slava russia” («Взломано Cozy Bear, слава России»).
Official representatives of the Georgian presidential administration have not yet commented on the hacker attack.
The Mtavari TV channel also reported a cyber attack. Their website was unavailable for several hours on the morning of January 25, and some of the stored data was destroyed.
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Today, January 26, the Formula TV channel also encountered similar problems. Their site was temporarily unavailable, then restored, but continues to work intermittently.
The Cozy Bear hacker group is linked to the Russian FSB
The Cozy Bear hacker group is a division of the Russian FSB, according to global intelligence agencies. Its activity was noticed during virtual attacks on the headquarters of US presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2008, as well as on the US Treasury Department and the US Department of Commerce.
Reports of cyberattacks in Georgia follow wave of fake bomb threats
Reports of cyberattacks in Georgia follow a wave of fake bomb threats. Over the past month, the country has supported false reports of bombs at the airport, schools and major shopping centers, causing panic among the population. In particular, the work of Batumi airport was recently paralyzed.
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Hacker attacks on the websites of the president and TV channels are part of a hybrid war
Georgia's State Security Service noted that false reports of explosive devices were coming from abroad, with some being linked to an international hybrid attack. Experts suggest that hacker attacks on the websites of the president and television channels are part of a hybrid war in which Georgian security forces are testing their readiness.
