The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia announced that investigations had proved that the Russian General Staff Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) Main Center for Special Technologies had carried out a “widespread, disruptive cyber-attack” against web pages and servers of Georgian government agencies, courts, and media organizations on October 28, 2019.
Some 15,000 state, private, and media websites were affected by hackers, including those of the President of Georgia, Georgia’s courts, NGOs, local self-government bodies, and private organizations.
The MFA statement noted that the “cyber-attack was targeted at Georgia’s national security and was intended to harm Georgian citizens and government structures by disrupting and paralyzing the functionality of various organizations, thereby causing anxiety among the general public. The investigation conducted by the Georgian authorities, together with information gathered through cooperation with partners, concluded that this cyber-attack was planned and carried out by the Main Division of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.”
U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo issued the following statement: “This action contradicts Russia’s attempts to claim it is a responsible actor in cyberspace and demonstrates a continuing pattern of reckless Russian GRU cyber operations against a number of countries. These operations aim to sow division, create insecurity, and undermine democratic institutions… The United States calls on Russia to cease this behavior in Georgia and elsewhere. The stability of cyberspace depends on the responsible behavior of nations. We, together with the international community, will continue our efforts to uphold an international framework of responsible state behavior in cyberspace.”
In addition to the United States, the United Kingdom and number of other European countries joined Georgia in denouncing Russia for its large-scale cyber-attack. U.K. foreign minister Dominic Raab said: “The GRU’s reckless and brazen campaign of cyberattacks against Georgia, a sovereign and independent nation, is totally unacceptable.”
The attack is the latest attempt by Russia since the 2008 war to undermine and destabilize Georgia.
More: Pompeo, foreign partners condemn Russian cyberattack on country of Georgia