Amidst the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, a number of Hacktivist groups have reportedly falsely claimed to have conducted successful cyberattacks on both countries. However, a new report by Check Point Research suggests that these reports were false. 🗞️Subscribe Now: Get Express Premium to access the best Election reporting and analysis 🗞️ The Hacktivist groups in question include 'AgainstTheWest', 'KelvinSecurity' and 'Killnet'. Claims of a successful hack on Russian search engine ‘Yandex’, a Russian Nuclear facility and a hack on Anonymous’ website have been proven false. The report by CPR suggests that the groups used a combination of old YouTube videos, public information and copied pages to convince the public of a successful hack. The report also suggests that numerous more groups are spreading misinformation during the current conflict. The leaked files that ‘AgainstTheWall’ claimed to leak were found by CPR to be already available public information. Meanwhile, ‘KelvinSecrity’ claimed to breach a Nuclear facility in Russia, publishing “leaked” links, databases and videos as proof. However, the video provided by the group turned out to be a year-old clip from Youtube, while links led to information publicly available for years. Pro-Russian group, ‘Killnet’ also claimed to hack Anonymous’ website and released a video as “proof”. CPR suggests these are fake. Cyber Safety Guidance Check Point Security also issued a list of steps to follow to avoid the spread of misinformation. Read the pointers below. Beware of fake news. Avoid and be cautious of fast-spreading misinformation Check time-stamps. Look out for timestamps on content – you can find yourself sharing old, non-relevant news Trace the origins of content. Be aware of the content you engage with. Where did it originate from? Are you being called to amplify it? Do you have a strong emotional reaction to it? Are you being asked to spend money? Double-check the link you get. Always look out for and check links you receive. Are they borrowed from somewhere else? Is it leading to a copied page? Rely on sources you trust. Always use information from trustworthy and official sources.
