Several Italian websites related to critical infrastructures, such as transport and financial services, have been targeted, againfrom the Filorussi hacker group Noname057 (16). The attacks, conducted with the technique of Ddos (Distributed denial of service), the overload of the servers had as its objective to make the sites that are targeted inaccessible, including those of the Airports of Linate and Malpensai Ports of Trieste and Taranto and the Online system of Banca Intesa Sanpaolo. The computer offensives have been claimed by the group itself and connected to recent statements by the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella on the Russiawho aroused critical reactions from Moscow. Noname057 (16) justified the attack by accusing Mattarella of being “Russian», Alluding to the speech pronounced in Marseille by the Head of the Italian State, in which he compared the current international context to that of the third Reich.
According to theACN (National Cybersicacy Agency) and the Postal policethe attacks have not had significant consequences on the services offered to citizens, thanks to the timely mitigation actions that have been implemented. Similar episodes had already happened a month ago, always by the Nonamed057 group (16).
What is the goal of Filorussi hacker attacks against Italian sites
Cyber attacks such as those of Noname057 (16) do not aim to subtract data or compromise infrastructures, but rather of demonstrate hostility and create temporary inconveniences. The Noname057 (16) group is a training of activists, or “hacktivists”, which supports Russia and systematically attacks institutional and corporate sites from countries considered hostile in Moscow. Their strategy is mainly based on DDOS attacksa technique that consists in overloading a server with a huge amount of requests, making the target website temporarily inaccessible.
This group is known for having targeted numerous European countries, in particular those who have expressed critical positions towards Russia or who have supported Ukraine in the current conflict. Italy has already been the target of similar attacks in the past, especially on the occasion of political decisions or public declarations that irritated the Kremlin. The recent attack on Italian sites seems to be tied in particular to a recent speech by Sergio Mattarella In Marseille, in which he approached the current situation of Russia to that of Nazi Germany, unleashing strong reactions from Moscow. The spokesman of the Russian Foreign Minister, Maria Zakharovadefined the words of Mattarella a provocation and the non -Mercate057 group (16) acted accordingly, claiming the IT attacks as retaliation.
Italy, although not at the forefront of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, is a member country of NATO and the European Union, two “actors” who have imposed sanctions to Russia and provided support for Kiev. This makes our country a goal for cyberwarfare operations carried out by pro -Russian groups, which try to destabilize the nations perceived as opponents.
The effects of the new hacker attack by Noname057 (16)
Despite the media clamor, Attacks did not have a significant impact on essential services. The ACN confirmed that the computer offensives were quickly managed and that the affected sites have returned operating in a short time. This is because the more sensitive digital infrastructures have advanced protection systems, which allow you to mitigate the effects of a ddos attack by reducing its duration and effectiveness. We reiterate, in fact, that the attacks of non -unwailed 057 (16) are not aimed at the theft of data or the infiltration in IT systems, but point much more “simply” to create important inconveniences and demonstrate their ability to affect critical infrastructures. Their effective effectiveness is limited, especially in countries with a good level of cybernetic protection.
