The European Union and the United Kingdom have announced new joint sanctions against Russia, accusing Moscow’s intelligence services of carrying out cyberattacks and attempts to disrupt countries across Europe.
The sanctions come after Russia’s FSB intelligence agency was accused of a cyberattack targeting Poland’s energy grid last December. Officials said the attack could have left around 500,000 people without power during winter, but it was stopped before it caused major damage.
The new measures target 24 individuals and organizations accused of supporting Russia’s cyber and hybrid operations. The list includes cybercriminal networks linked to Russian intelligence services and people involved in spreading false anti-Ukraine messages.
The UK and EU also announced sanctions against senior figures from Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency, including Vyacheslav Stafeyev, Ivan Senin, and Ivan Kasyanenko, who are accused of helping direct cyber operations.
Officials said Russia has increasingly used cyberattacks and online campaigns to create disruption and division across Europe. Authorities warned that Russian intelligence agencies are working with cybercriminal groups to collect information and support Moscow’s military and political goals.
The UK and EU said the sanctions are a response to what they described as Russia’s “reckless” attempts to threaten European security.
Earlier this month, cybersecurity agencies from the US and eight partner countries have issued a joint advisory warning that state-backed hackers linked to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Center 16 are targeting vulnerable routers to gain access to critical infrastructure networks.
Additionally, France’s Cyber Crisis Coordination Center released a report detailing cyber activity against France attributed to Turla (aka military unit 71330 or Center for Radio-Electronic Intelligence of Communications), an intrusion set linked to the 16th Center of FSB, active since at least 2004. Turla-linked operations have targeted French ministries, diplomatic entities, defense bodies, justice-sector entities, and technology companies since the 2010s.