German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said there is “hard evidence” that she was targeted by Russian hacker in what she called “outrageous” spying attempts. The German judiciary has been looking for Dmitriy Badin, a 29 year old Russian who is supposed to work for the Russian military intelligence service GRU.
The Attorney General is convinced that he was involved in the cyber attack on the IT system of the German National Day few years ago. At that time, hackers had probably stolen thousands of emails. Badin is said to have controlled malware that was also discovered on the computers in the Chancellor’s office.
After five years of investigation, the federal police and other security authorities decided for an arrest warrant for Badin at the Federal Court of Justice. The document is more than 50 pages long and it is formulated with unusual clarity.
Russian hacker attack is a particularly serious case of espionage, the judge said. The spying on the parliament represented an attack on the legislature of the Federal Republic and thus an attack on the core area of the German state. It was carried out by the Russian military intelligence service.
The federal government is now debating whether and how to respond to the arrest warrant against the Russian hacker. Now there is hard evidence that Russian forces are responsible for the hack. Merkel described the process as outrageous and warned reserve reactions to Russia. Russia has since rejected the allegations. There is no evidence that Russian hacker were behind the attack five years ago.
The Tone Towards Moscow Is Getting Rougher
Government circles say they want to send a strong signal. Russia is still an important partner for Germany, but it is obvious that Russian services have long since stopped adhering to the rules of the game.
The judiciary is currently considering expanding the search for the Russian hacker Badin. However, an international search notice via Interpol is proving difficult. Because the system must not be used to search for people accused of political acts. Espionage, however, is considered a political act. However, it would be conceivable to have Badin searched as a cybercriminal.
