The United States has filed charges against five Russian intelligence officers and one Russian civilian in connection with a major cyber attack, described by US prosecutors as the Kremlin’s first strike in the war against Ukraine.
On Thursday, the Department of Justice charged the Russians with carrying out the malicious “WhisperGate” attack in January 2022, which aimed to weaken Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure ahead of the Russian invasion a month later.
“The WhisperGate attack targeted Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and computer systems entirely unrelated to the military or national defense, including government agencies responsible for emergency services, food security, and education, aiming to damage the morale of Ukrainians,” said US Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen.
The attack “can be considered the first strike of the war,” said FBI Special Agent Bill DelBagno, speaking alongside Olsen during a press conference in Baltimore, Maryland.
The charges announced on Thursday are the result of an FBI operation code-named “Toy Soldiers,” based on charges initially filed in June against 22-year-old Russian Amin Stigal, a civilian accused of carrying out the cyber attack to assist Russian intelligence before the aggression against Ukraine.
In addition to the new charges, US officials announced they are offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest of each of the accused Russians.
Officials said they are working with Interpol to provide data that could help in the arrest of the six Russians.
“We have them in our sights. We know who they are. There is a reward for them and we will pursue them relentlessly,” said US Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen.
“The message is clear,” he added, “to the GRU unit, we know who you are and we will find you,” VOA reports.
