Putin’s ‘Victory Parade’ TV Show Hacked: ‘Blood on Your Hands’
Ukrainian hackers and their friends continue to pummel Russian computers. And it’s not just DDoS pranks: “Hundreds of millions of documents” are being leaked.
And today, Putin’s famous Victory Parade has been marred by hackers. TV screens across Russia showed anti-war, anti-propaganda messages—such as, “Your hands are covered in blood from the deaths of thousands of Ukrainians and their children.”
The babushka next to Putin looks fed up. In today’s SB Blogwatch, we’re humming 1980-era Kate Bush.
Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment. Not to mention: JWST deep dive.
Vladimir vs. Volodymyr
What’s the craic? Mehul Srivastava reports—“Russia pummelled by pro-Ukrainian hackers”:
“Swarmed by hordes of pro-Ukrainian hackers”
For more than a decade, Ukrainian government, financial and other systems were pummelled by Russian state-backed hackers. … Now, Russia itself is being hunted in the cyber arena by pro-Ukraine hackers, opportunistic criminal groups and, as some security researchers suspect, government-backed entities from western countries.
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Russian companies and government bodies [are being] swarmed by hordes of pro-Ukrainian hackers. … The result has been hundreds of millions of documents spilling out from targets as varied as:
- Transneft, a huge oil pipeline operator close to the Russian government;
- Russia’s Ministry of Culture;
- Belarusian power supplier Elektrotsentrmontazh; …
- an arm of the Russian Orthodox Church that has backed the war in Ukraine; …
- Dmitriy Sergeyevich Badin, [a] Russian government-backed hacker … atop the FBI’s most wanted list; [and]
- the All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, known as a voice of the Kremlin and home to … some of the most extreme Russian government propaganda.
And it’s not just data leaks. Poppy Wood would wish to add—“Russia TV hacked … as Vladimir Putin celebrates Victory Day”:
“Blood is on your hands”
Russian state television channels were hacked to display messages telling viewers that their hands are “covered in blood.” … With millions tuning in to watch the Victory Day parade in Moscow on Monday, program names were changed to display messages such as “television and the government is lying” and “your hands are covered in blood from the deaths of thousands of Ukrainians and their children.”
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The hack on Monday morning was launched as audiences in Russia tuned in to watch President Vladimir Putin deliver an address to the nation commemorating the end of the Second World War … All Russian TV stations were changed to read “blood is on your hands” – including the Kremlin’s main propaganda channel.
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The “no to war” messages are understood to have featured on the majority of Russian TV channels between 7am and 11am [but] some channels have been affected since last night. … Russian authorities are yet to acknowledge the hack.
So it appears that CrystalCowboy was prescient a few days ago:
It would be a shame if cyber activity caused disruptions to the Victory Day celebration.
Will all this hacking shorten the war? quantaman is a little conflicted, frankly:
Frankly, I am a little conflicted about the duration of the war. … Way too many people are suffering and dying for the war to go another day. On the other hand, if it goes on long enough for Ukraine to retake the “separatist regions” and even Crimea that’s a huge benefit to the people who live there, and it’ll get Ukraine out of a frozen conflict without having to cede territory.
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Of course, the cost for that benefit is the lives of many Ukrainians and Russians (many of whom are unwilling conscripts).
But is this a legitimate tactic? Yes, says ItchyPoo:
Russia has been breaking any supposed rules of engagement way before this. Solarwinds and many other cyber attacks have pushed the boundaries. … I back this 100%. Anything that makes it more painful and makes Russia think twice should be fair game.
And a poetic 93 Escort Wagon goes the extra mile:
You know what they say: Turnabout is fair play.
But are we benefiting? Here’s Fatesrider:
Given the apparent scale of this wave … I’d fully expect Western intelligence services to be taking full advantage. … They’d be fools not to. … They’re at the least running around with huge buckets and sifting the contents of what falls into them.
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Russia spent a lot of time and resources hacking the West, not to mention trying to isolate and brainwash their own people. Seems some karmic reward has landed on their networks with a resounding bang. Can’t say I’m unhappy about that.
What can future war planners learn? Metrogn0me waxes pedagogic:
There’s a bigger trend in play here and that’s the ‘democratization’ … of hacking, cyber attacks and info warfare. Granted, cutting edge, state of the art, cyber capabilities will continue to be exclusive to state actors but it turns out that non-state actors can and do bring significant consequences.
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While sophisticated weaponry and tactics will remain crucial, long term outcomes and successes will hinge on public attitudes and perceptions of justice. Concepts like violent state death, colonialist plunder or endless feeding of unwilling millions … to serve as canon fodder are simply unsustainable. Not sure how this will evolve but it is an inflection point.
Meanwhile, it’s an older meme, CrystalCowboy, but it checks out:
All your borscht are belong to us!
And Finally:
You have been reading SB Blogwatch by Richi Jennings. Richi curates the best bloggy bits, finest forums, and weirdest websites … so you don’t have to. Hate mail may be directed to @RiCHi or [email protected]. Ask your doctor before reading. Your mileage may vary. E&OE. 30.
Image sauce: RIA Novosti
