European intelligence agencies now devote as much attention to suspected Russian interference as they do to counterterrorism, highlighting how cyberattacks and sabotage have become central to the continent’s security concerns. The warning follows a major cyberattack that disrupted France’s national postal service during the Christmas delivery rush.
Pro-Russian Hackers Target France’s Postal Service
French prosecutors said Wednesday that the pro-Russian hacking group Noname057(16) claimed responsibility for the attack. The domestic intelligence agency DGSI immediately took over the investigation, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office. La Poste’s central computer systems went offline Monday in a distributed denial-of-service attack that remained unresolved by Wednesday morning. Postal workers could not track deliveries, and online payments through the company’s banking arm, La Banque Postale, were also disrupted. The attack struck at the busiest season for a company employing more than 200,000 people.
Noname057(16): A Persistent Threat Across Europe
Noname057(16) has previously targeted Ukrainian media outlets and government and corporate websites in Poland, Sweden, Germany, and France. The group has attacked French government platforms, including the Ministry of Justice and multiple prefectures and municipalities. In July, it became a target of Operation Eastwood, a coordinated international police action involving authorities from 12 countries. Police dismantled more than 100 servers worldwide, arrested suspects in France and Spain, and issued seven arrest warrants, six for Russian nationals. Yet the group resumed operations within days and has remained active.
Broader Cyber Incidents Raise Alarm
The La Poste disruption came just days after France acknowledged a cyberattack on the Interior Ministry, which oversees national security. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told Franceinfo that a suspected hacker extracted dozens of sensitive documents and accessed information on police records and wanted individuals. Prosecutors also revealed that France’s counterintelligence agency is investigating a plot involving software that could have allowed remote control of computer systems on an international passenger ferry. Authorities have detained a Latvian crew member on charges of acting for an unidentified foreign power.
Hints of Russian Involvement and Hybrid Warfare
Although no official attribution has been made, Nunez strongly hinted at Russian involvement, saying, “foreign interference very often comes from same country.” France and other European allies of Ukraine accuse Russia of waging a campaign of “hybrid warfare” that combines sabotage, assassinations, cyberattacks, and disinformation to destabilize Western societies and undermine support for Ukraine. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Western officials have attributed dozens of sabotage incidents to Moscow, including warehouse arson, railway disruptions, and widespread vandalism. Against this backdrop, European intelligence agencies now say that investigating Russian interference consumes as much time and resources as counterterrorism.
