Ukrainian Security Arrests Member of Cyber Army Suspected of Working for Russia

The Security Service of Ukraine has arrested a Kharkiv resident on allegationsthat he's a member of a hacker group called "People's Cyber Army of the Russian Federation" who helped Russian forces better aim missiles against civilian infrastructure.

The Cyber Army hacker group is likely controlled by the Russian Security Service (FSB) and operates under the guise of a hacktivist organization. The Ukrainian authorities accused the Kharkiv resident not only of a number of DDoS attacks, but also of much more serious crimes.

"The perpetrator adjusted enemy fire in the city and prepared cyber attacks on Ukrainian government websites," said the Ukrainian authorities on Telegram. "Based on the information provided by the suspect, occupiers carried out two missile strikes on the civilian infrastructure of the regional center, including a local hospital."

"He also conducted reconnaissance on the locations of the Defense Forces within the region, particularly focusing on possible combat positions of artillery and anti-aircraft defense systems of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the SBU added.

The suspect is an IT specialist that the FSB allegedly recruited. He is accused of surveying various areas where Ukrainian forces were believed to be deployed, after which he sent the information directly to the FSB.

He's not the only one arrested for allegedly giving information to Russian forces in the past couple of years. In August 2023, SBU also dismantled a group consisting of women in the Donetsk region that was providing information to Russian Intelligence agencies and the Wagner paramilitary group.

If found guilty, the Kharkiv resident faces up to 12 years in prison for unauthorized dissemination of information about the Ukrainian plans, along with weapons movement and armed forces deployments.