European intelligence agencies say investigations into suspected Russian interference now absorb as much time and resources as counterterrorism, underscoring how cyber and sabotage threats have reshaped the continent’s security landscape. The warning comes as French authorities investigate a cyberattack that crippled the country’s national postal service at the height of the Christmas delivery rush.
Postal Service Hit by Claimed Pro-Russian Cyberattack
French prosecutors said on Wednesday that the pro-Russian hacking group Noname057(16) claimed responsibility for a cyberattack that disrupted La Poste, France’s national postal operator. Following the claim, the domestic intelligence agency DGSI took over the investigation, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office. La Poste’s central computer systems were knocked offline on Monday by a distributed denial-of-service attack that remained unresolved by Wednesday morning. The disruption prevented postal workers from tracking package deliveries and interfered with online payments at La Banque Postale, the group’s banking arm, during the busiest period of the year for a company that employs more than 200,000 people.
A Familiar Actor in European Cyber Campaigns
Noname057(16) is no stranger to European security services. The group has previously targeted Ukrainian media outlets and government and corporate websites in countries including Poland, Sweden and Germany, as well as French government platforms such as the Ministry of Justice and several prefectures and cities. In July, the group became a key target of Operation Eastwood, a coordinated international police effort involving authorities from 12 countries. That operation dismantled more than 100 servers worldwide, led to arrests in France and Spain, and resulted in seven arrest warrants, six of them for Russian nationals. Despite the crackdown, the group resumed activity within days and has remained operational.
Cyber Incidents Add to Broader Security Concerns
The La Poste attack followed closely on the heels of another cyber incident acknowledged by the French government. Days earlier, officials said a cyberattack affected the Interior Ministry, which oversees national security. In that breach, a suspected hacker extracted several dozen sensitive documents and gained access to information related to police records and wanted individuals, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told Franceinfo. Prosecutors last week also confirmed that France’s counterintelligence agency is investigating a suspected cyberattack plot involving software that could have enabled remote control of computer systems on an international passenger ferry. Authorities said a Latvian crew member is being held on charges of acting on behalf of an unidentified foreign power.
Russia’s Shadow Looms Over Investigations
While officials have stopped short of formal attribution, Nunez strongly suggested Russian involvement, saying that “foreign interference very often comes from same country.” France and other European allies of Ukraine argue that Russia is conducting a sustained campaign of “hybrid warfare,” combining sabotage, cyberattacks, assassinations and disinformation to destabilise Western societies and erode support for Kyiv. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Western officials have linked scores of incidents across Europe to Moscow, including arson attacks on warehouses, railway sabotage and widespread vandalism. Against that backdrop, intelligence agencies now say tracking Russian interference has become as demanding and consequential as confronting terrorist threats.
