Germany has formally accused Russia of orchestrating a cyberattack on its air traffic control systems and attempting to interfere with the country’s federal election earlier this year. The German Foreign Ministry summoned Russia’s ambassador to Berlin, presenting evidence linking the August 2024 attack on Deutsche Flugsicherung, Germany’s state-owned air traffic control operator, to APT28, also known as Fancy Bear, a notorious hacking collective operating under Russia’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU).
According to German officials, Russia’s goal was to destabilize the election and undermine trust in democratic institutions through a disinformation campaign called Storm 1516. This campaign included spreading fake videos alleging ballot manipulation, targeting prominent politicians like Chancellor Friedrich Merz and former Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck. Germany’s intelligence services have solid proof of Russia’s involvement, and they plan to take countermeasures, including new EU sanctions, to make Russia pay for its actions.
Russia has denied these allegations, calling them “baseless, unfounded, and absurd”. This incident is part of a broader pattern of cyberattacks on aviation infrastructure worldwide, with security experts warning of an unprecedented surge in such attacks.
