Hacking collective Anonymous has claimed to have successfully hacked Russia’s Central Bank.
The hackers have warned that they plan to release 35,000 hacked files that they claim will expose “secret agreements” with the Russian government.
The group says it will publish the files in the next 48 hours.
The bank is responsible for protecting and ensuring the safety of the ruble, the Russian currency.
The ruble has plummeted in value since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine last month.
In a post on Twitter by one of the group’s accounts, Anonymous revealed its latest hack, though details were limited.
Alongside an image of a smiling mask – now synonymous with the group – it wrote: “JUST IN: The #Anonymous collective has hacked the Central Bank of Russia.
“More than 35.000 files will be released within 48 hours with secret agreements. #OpRussia.”
JUST IN: The #Anonymous collective has hacked the Central Bank of Russia. More than 35.000 files will be released within 48 hours with secret agreements. #OpRussia pic.twitter.com/lop140ytcp
— Anonymous TV 🇺🇦 (@YourAnonTV) March 23, 2022
It comes as speculation has mounted in recent days over the future of central bank head Elvira Nabiullina.
She was photographed looking dejected at a Kremlin meeting and posted a cryptic video.
In the video, she acknowledged the Russian economy was in an “extreme” situation.
“We all very much would have liked this not to have happened,” she said.
But Vladimir Putin this week asked parliament to nominate her for another term, apparently scotching rumors she could resign in protest at the war.
There have been murmurs of concern from oligarchs who stand to lose massively from the invasion, such as the magnates Oleg Deripaska and Mikhail Fridman, who have both made cautious comments promoting peace.
On March 3, the board of Russia’s largest privately-owned energy company, oil giant Lukoil, also called for an end to the conflict.
Noble added that many members of the elite were shocked by the invasion, as the vast majority “had not been involved in the decision-making process” and believed Putin was planning brinkmanship rather than invasion.
“However, it’s one thing to call for peace; it’s quite another to criticize Putin directly,” he said.
Earlier this week, Anonymous warned Western companies continuing to operate in Russia that they must pull out or risk facing cyberattacks in light of the invasion of Ukraine.
The collective is responsible for several attacks of Russian state-controlled media and government websites in which it forcibly swapped Kremlin-directed programming for videos of the bloodshed on the ground in Ukraine and anti-war statements.
Anonymous has also conducted cyber raids on the likes of Russia’s media regulator Roskomnadzor and Russian intelligence and security service FSB, leaking thousands of classified documents to expose the details of Putin’s plans to conquer Ukraine and undermine the Kremlin’s domestic propaganda drive.
But now, the hacktivists are turning their attention to large corporations who have not yet suspended their operations in Russia amid the war.
Anonymous’ official Twitter account posted yesterday that companies had 48 hours to “pull out” of Russia or face becoming a target of further attacks.
The same account declared on Thursday that its #OpRussia cyber campaign was “launching unprecedented attacks” on Russian government websites and would double the capacity of its attacks.
“Press Release: We call on all companies that continue to operate in Russia by paying taxes to the budget of the Kremlin’s criminal regime: Pull out of Russia!” the tweet read.
“We give you 48 hours to reflect and withdraw from Russia or else you will be under our target! #Anonymous #OpRussia.”
The announcement was accompanied by a picture displaying a variety of company logos ranging from oil field service corporation Halliburton to cloud computing service Citrix.
