On June 27, 2022, Lithuania said it had been the victim of a cyberattack “ intense type DDoS (denial of service attack). This attack came as Russia brandished certain threats towards Lithuania for having imposed restrictions on transit to Kaliningrad, a Russian enclave bordering the Baltic country.
Several Lithuanian organizations affected by this major cyberattack
For the director of the national cybersecurity center in Lithuania, Jonas Skardinskas, these DDoS attacks came from “ most likely from Russia. They targeted the sites of public institutions, secure networks and several Lithuanian companies. This notably forced Lithuania to suspend its tax services (including the one dealing with taxes) as well as its procedure for issuing passports.
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Jonas Skardinskas says he ” attacks of a similar or greater intensity are very likely to continue in the coming days, particularly in the transport, energy and financial sectors “. The National Cybersecurity Center supported by the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense stands ready to support any Lithuanian organization that falls victim to a new attack by the end of the week.
A cyberattack claimed by Killnet
A few hours after the start of the cyberattack, the Russian hacker group Killnet claimed responsibility for these DDoS attacks. In a message, the hacker collective said it was a reaction to Lithuania’s ban on the transit of certain Russian products to Kaliningrad. This measure was taken by the Baltic country, an EU member, in early June as part of European sanctions against Moscow, imposed after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
” Russia will certainly respond to such hostile actions “Said Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of the Russian Security Council, last week during a visit to Kaliningrad. ” He also clarified that adequate measures are being developed at an inter-ministerial level and will be taken in the near future. […]. Their consequences will have a significant negative impact on the population of Lithuania “.
For the Lithuanian Prime Minister, Ingrida Simonyte, such attacks have been recurrent since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia on February 24. Indeed, on several occasions, it has been proven that Russia was at the center of several cyberattacks: in an attempt to disrupt the organization of Eurovision 2022 won by Ukraine or to cause breakdowns in a network of satellites operated by Ukraine just before invading the country.