Russia's Killnet group claims responsibility for cyberattack on Lithuanian sites

Dev Kundaliya

28 June 2022

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Russia's Killnet group has claimed responsibility for cyberattack on Lithuanian sites

'We have demolished 1652 web resources,' hackers say

Russian hacker group Killnet says it launched a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack on Lithuania on Monday in response to the country's decision to block the transit of goods subject to European Union sanctions to Russia's Kaliningrad enclave.

A Killnet group spokeswoman told Reuters that the attack will continue until Lithuania lifts the blockade.

"We have demolished 1652 web resources. And that's just so far."

Several state and private websites in Lithuania were affected by the Killnet cyberattack.

Parts of the Secure National Data Transfer Network, one of the critical components of Lithuania's strategy to ensure national security in cyberspace, were affected as a result of the flood of malicious traffic, according to Lithuania's government.

State Tax Inspectorate (STI) and B1.lt, one of Lithuania's biggest accounting service providers, were among the websites that were taken down by Killnet.

The tax authority in Lithuania said that it halted all activities due to an exceptionally high number of attempts to connect to its computers, although all data remained secure.

State institutions, transportation agencies, and media websites are the top targets, according to deputy defence minister Margiris Abukevicius.

He added that Lithuania had begun to see signs of a cyberattack as early as June 21.

Kaliningrad is situated between EU and NATO members Poland and Lithuania and gets supplies from Russia through rail and gas pipelines via Lithuania.

In response to the halted shipments to Kaliningrad, a Russian Security Council spokesperson on June 22 threatened retaliation and said that this would have a very detrimental effect on the inhabitants of Lithuania.

"It is very likely that attacks of similar or greater intensity will continue in the coming days, especially in the transportation, energy and financial sectors," Lithuania's National Cyber Security Centre said.

Russia's foreign ministry has demanded that Lithuania lifts its "openly hostile" restrictions on rail transit to Kaliningrad.

Coal, metals, building supplies and cutting-edge technology are among the products that have been sanctioned by the EU.

"If in the near future cargo transit between the Kaliningrad region and the rest of the territory of the Russian Federation through Lithuania is not restored in full, then Russia reserves the right to take actions to protect its national interests," the Russian foreign ministry said last week.

"The situation is more than serious and it requires a very deep analysis before formulating any measures and decisions," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Gabrielius Landsbergis, the foreign minister of Lithuania, justified the action and said that his nation was simply implementing sanctions imposed by the EU, of which it is a member.

He said that the actions had been taken in consultation with the European Commission and in accordance with its guidelines.

Killnet first appeared at the start of Russia's invasion and has subsequently posted claims of DDoS assaults on the websites of Lithuania and other nations. According to security company Flashpoint, targets have included police agencies, airports and governments.

Last month, the Italian police's cybersecurity department blocked several attacks by Killnet during the voting and the performances of Eurovision Song Contest 2022's semifinals (10th and 12th May) and final (14th May).

Killnet threatened to destroy the online voting system for Eurovision by sending 10 billion requests, as well as to sabotage the process by adding false votes for some countries.

On the 11th May, just days before the event's final, Killnet claimed responsibility for an attack on the websites of many Italian institutions, including the Senate and the National Health Institute.