Russia attacks Europe’s rail infrastructure – Financial Times
Russia has made “thousands” of attempts to interfere with European rail networks to destabilize the EU and sabotage critical infrastructure.
The Czech Minister of Transport Martin Kupka told the Financial Times about this.
According to him, Moscow is suspected of “thousands of attempts to weaken our systems” after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Kupka said that the hacker attacks targeted the signaling systems and networks of the Czech national railway operator České dráhy.
Previous attacks have led to the failure of ticketing systems. This raised concerns that successful attacks could lead to serious accidents.
This is definitely a difficult moment. . [But] I’m really very happy because we can protect all systems against attacks.
Martin Kupka, Minister of Transport of the Czech Republic
České dráhy said it has “seen an increase in the number of cyberattacks on our digital infrastructure” and is “constantly strengthening” its cybersecurity.
Cyberattacks on transportation in Europe
The Financial Times writes that in March 2023, the EU cybersecurity agency published its first report on threats to transportation.
It states that “attacks on railroad companies have become more frequent, primarily due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
The report notes major cyberattacks by “pro-Russian hacker groups” on railroad companies in Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, and Estonia.
The Czech cybersecurity agency NUKIB has also warned of an increase in the number of cyberattacks in recent years.
One of the notable trends of the past year was the growing interest of attackers in the energy and transportation sectors,” the report said in July.
