Russian hackers briefly assumed control of a dam in Norway in April, said that the head of the counterintelligence agency of the Nordic country on Wednesday, the first time Oslo officially attributed the digital attack on his neighbor.
While commanding the dam in Bremaner in western Norway on April 7, the hackers opened an unveiled and released 500 liters of water per second for four hours before the attack was detected and interrupted, the authorities said.
Nobody was injured during the attack.
Norway produces much of its electricity through hydroelectric dams and the intelligence authorities had already felt the risk of attacks on their energy infrastructures.
“In the last year, we have seen a change in the activity of the pro-Russian cyber agents,” said Beate Gangaa, head of the police security agency Norway, in a speech.
The accident in Bremaner was one of those activities, added Gangaas.
“The purpose of this type of operation is to influence and cause fear and chaos among the general population,” he said. “Our Russian neighbor is becoming more dangerous.”
The Russian Embassy of Oslo said that the Gangaas statements are “unfounded and motivated politically”.
“It is obvious that the PST is trying without success to support the legendary threat of Russian sabotage against the Norwegian infrastructure this year, which she herself invented in her (annual) relationship of February,” he said in a declaration sent via and -mail to Reuters.
In September last year, the head of espionage of the United Kingdom accused Russia of having embarked on an “incredibly reckless campaign” of sabotage in Europe, in part to scare European countries, preventing them from helping Ukraine. Moscow denies the statement.
After his speech, Gangaas told Reuters that he was revealing his attribution to notify the general population and try to prevent Russia from launching new attacks.
“I want the Norwegians to be prepared,” he said in an interview.
Norway, a NATO member, borders Russia to the Arctic. Like the other Nordic countries, the country is a defender of Ukraine. It is also the largest gas supplier in Europe, which is mainly transported through a network of pipes under the North Sea.
Source: Terra
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