Russia experiences record surge in cyberattacks, majority traced to US, Europe

Russia’s communications regulator, Roskomnadzor (RKN), has reported an unprecedented spike in cyberattacks targeting the country’s information resources in February and March, linking the surge to the nationwide ban on Telegram.

RKN data shows that the bulk of malicious traffic originated from the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

Government information systems were the primary targets of DDoS attacks, the agency said. While RKN typically records around 350 attacks per week, the period from February 26 to March 4 saw the total number of attacks rise sharply to 949. Monitoring between March 16 and 22 indicated that the US accounted for 37.6% of cyberattack traffic, followed by Germany with 15.2% and the UK with 11.1%.

The most powerful attack in March targeted a major provider, reaching 25.46 Gbps, though the company’s identity was not disclosed by RKN. The longest recorded attack hit the infrastructure of a commercial organization, lasting 113 hours and 22 minutes—over 4.5 days.

Telecommunications companies faced the highest volume of attacks, with 51 incidents in a single week, followed by hosting providers with 40 and government resources with 33, Russian media said.

By Vafa Guliyeva