Under the headline "Bild: Russian Hackers Launch Cyber Attack on German Banks," Bloomberg Ashar reported that the well-known hacker group "Fancy Bear," linked to the Russian state, has launched a cyber attack on Germany's critical infrastructure and banking system in recent days, according to the newspaper Bild citing unnamed Western intelligence sources. A spokesperson for the German Federal Cyber Security Agency, "BSI," stated that the agency was unaware of this attack, but Bild reported that the FBI confirmed the breach on Wednesday, citing sources who described the attack as potentially retaliatory for the international sanctions imposed on Russia and Belarus.
Spokespeople for Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, and lobbying groups for savings and cooperative lending institutions stated that they were investigating the report. However, the German financial regulator, BaFin, and the European Central Bank did not immediately respond to requests for comment. German authorities are aware of the potential for Russian interference, both in terms of cyber attacks on infrastructure and disinformation campaigns, with elections approaching in September and Chancellor Angela Merkel preparing to step down.
Annalena Baerbock, the Green Party candidate, has also become a target due to her strong opposition to the nearly completed Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, which will transport gas from Russia to Germany. Additionally, the Fancy Bear group is believed to be controlled by the Russian military intelligence agency, GRU, and was behind the cyber attack on Hillary Clinton's campaign staff before the 2016 election, according to an indictment issued by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2018.
The group is also thought to be responsible for several high-profile fraudulent attacks globally, with Microsoft reporting last year that it targeted about 200 organizations directly or indirectly related to U.S. elections and European political organizations. Russia, for its part, has repeatedly denied state involvement in hacking operations, and President Vladimir Putin told reporters after his summit with President Joe Biden this month that the two sides agreed to "begin consultations" on cybersecurity, stating that both sides should "ignore all conspiracy theories" regarding the attacks. Following cyber attacks in the U.S. linked to Russia in December, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed allegations of Moscow's involvement, asserting that "there is no need to blame the Russians for everything immediately and without basis."
