Ooni Koda
  1. Home
  2. /
  3. Newsfeed
  4. /
  5. Romania joins international efforts to attribute cyberattacks on...

Romania joins international efforts to attribute cyberattacks on Viasat network to Russian Federation

May 26, 2022

   Romania supports the EU statement and joins the United States and other international partners in the demarche to attribute the cyberattack on KA-SAT/VIASAT satellite communications network, which took place on February 24, in the context of the Russian Federation's aggression against Ukraine, informs a press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE)."The impact on the Viasat network has been significant, affecting users in EU member-states, including Romania. Cyberattacks on critical infrastructure are unacceptable. Romania is deeply concerned about the destructive, disruptive and destabilizing effects of these cyberattacks," reads the release .According to the quoted source, Romania also condemns, in context, the cyberattacks against Ukraine, carried out both before and after the outbreak of the conflict, as well as the use of malware and DDoS attacks for these purposes.Romania expresses its full solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people and condemns the unprovoked and unjustified aggression of the Russian Federation, including through the use of cyberattacks, the MAE reports."Such malicious attacks are carried out with disregard for the international framework of responsible behavior of states in cyberspace, as defined at the UN level by the consensus reports of the UN Group of Governmental Experts (UNGGE) and reaffirmed by the Open Group with Extended Participation (OEWG)," states the cited source.The European Union on Tuesday accused the Russian authorities of carrying out a cyberattack on a satellite network an hour before the invasion of Ukraine to prepare the ground for the assault, international media reported.This is the first time the EU has openly accused the Russian government of carrying out a cyberattack, European Foreign Minister Josep Borrell told a news conference in Brussels."The cyberattack took place an hour before Russia's unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, thus facilitating military aggression," the EU said in a statement on behalf of the 27 member-states."This cyberattack had a significant impact causing indiscriminate communication outages and disruptions across several public authorities, businesses and users in Ukraine, as well as affecting several EU Member States," the statement said."The European Union and its Member States, together with its international partners, strongly condemn the malicious cyber activity conducted by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, which targeted the satellite KA-SAT network, operated by Viasat," the document added."We can attribute the attack to the Russian government," said Josep Borrell.The EU had so far claimed that the cyberattacks came "from within Russia", but without incriminating the Russian authorities."The European Union, working closely with its partners, is considering further steps to prevent, discourage, deter and respond to such malicious behaviour in cyberspace," the EU's declaration shows."The European Union will continue to provide coordinated political, financial and material support to Ukraine to strengthen its cyber resilience," the text reads.The attack on the US satellite operator Viasat has left thousands of users without internet in Germany, France, Hungary, Greece, Italy or Poland, according to international media.  

Read in full - click here
Venice Film Festival: Romanian director Cristian Mungiu, member of this year’s jury

Romanian director Cristian Mungiu will be part of the jury that will judge the films in the main competition of this year’s Venice Film Festival - Venezia 82. The jury, headed by American director Alexander Payne, includes French director and screenwriter Stéphane Brizé, Italian director and screenwriter Maura Delpero, Iranian director and writer Mohammad Rasoulof, Brazilian actress, writer, and […]

Council of Europe report: Romania among six European countries facing severe prison overcrowding

Romania continues to face significant prison overcrowding, according to the Council of Europe’s latest data, released on Friday, July 18. The 2024 Annual Penal Statistics on Prison Populations (SPACE I) show that Romania is among six countries in Europe with severe overcrowding, housing 116 inmates for every 100 available places. The report, which...

Chris Hemsworth's surprise drum performance with Ed Sheeran in Bucharest featured in new ‘Limitless’ season

Chris Hemsworth returns to Disney+ in August with a new season of the National Geographic documentary series Limitless, this time focused not just on longevity, but on discovering how to live better. Titled Limitless: Live Better Now, the three-part season follows Hemsworth through physical, emotional, and mental challenges across six countries, with one standout episode […]

Black Sea 200 Regatta 2025: First non-stop offshore regatta in Romania takes place this month

The Black Sea 200 Regatta 2025, Romania’s first non-stop offshore regatta with a 200 nautical mile route, takes place between July 21 and 27. Now in its first edition, the event brings together more than 10 boats from Romania and Bulgaria, according to the organizers. The endurance course will start and finish in the Romanian […]

Illegal zoo in southern Romania fined for environmental and animal welfare violations

The National Environmental Guard has fined an illegally operating zoo in Dâmbovița county, southern Romania, a total of RON 120,000 following a joint inspection that uncovered serious violations, including the lack of environmental authorization and inadequate conditions for wild animals kept in captivity. The zoo was reportedly charging RON 50 per person for entry and […]

Romania’s cybersecurity agency and Enevo join forces to protect energy infrastructure

The National Cybersecurity Directorate (DNSC) and engineering company Enevo Group have signed a strategic cooperation agreement to strengthen cybersecurity in Romania’s energy sector. The partnership aims to test and develop monitoring and alerting technologies for cyberattacks, and to improve national response coordination to incidents affecting critical infrastructure, the companies said. The agreement focuses on sharing […]