'Russian origin' cyberattacks target Italy's Winter Olympics

"Antonio Tajani told reporters on Wednesday that a series of cyberattacks targeted some of the government's foreign offices, including the one in the US capital. He said they were "of Russian origin," but did not specify whether this appeared to be state-backed activity, nor provide details about the nature of the attacks, AP reported. "We prevented a series of cyberattacks against foreign ministry sites, starting with Washington, and also involving some Winter Olympics sites, including hotels in Cortina," he said."

"Tajani's comments follow a warning from the UK's cybersecurity agency not to underestimate pro-Russia hacktivists, and although it was issued in the context of attacks on UK critical infrastructure, Russia and those aligned to it have a long history of targeting the Summer and Winter Games. Since it hosted the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, an event Russia hoped it could use a political springboard, the UK, US, and others have formally attributed several cyberattacks against the events in the years that followed to Russia."

"The International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned Russia from competing in the Games in 2017 following a doping scandal involving a number of its athletes, and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) banned it from all international sporting events in 2019. That WADA sanction was due to be lifted after the 2022 Beijing Games, but Russia then invaded Ukraine, leading the IOC to impose an indefinite ban on Russian athletes."

Italy prevented a series of cyberattacks of Russian origin that targeted some government foreign offices, including the embassy in Washington, and locations linked to the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics such as hotels in Cortina. No determination was provided about whether the activity appears state-backed, nor were technical details released. A UK cybersecurity agency warned not to underestimate pro-Russia hacktivists and highlighted risks to critical infrastructure. Western governments have formally attributed cyberattacks against Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018 and identified disinformation campaigns around Paris 2024 as Russian-linked. IOC and WADA sanctions and the Ukraine invasion led to an indefinite ban; 13 Russians will compete as independents without the Russian flag.

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