back to article Don't underestimate pro-Russia hacktivists, warns UK's cyber crew

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is once again warning that pro-Russia hacktivists are a threat to critical services operators. The cyber arm of the UK's sigint specialists at GCHQ specifically highlighted local authorities, including regional governments, and critical national infrastructure (CNI) organizations …

  1. VoiceOfTruth Silver badge

    Perhaps the NCSC should open its eyes

    The USA is currently threatening an ally. The USA is currently threatening to impose economic warfare against us.

    The NCSC apparently doesn't have any problems with American access to all our data and systems. So I'll take what they say with a few tons of salt.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Voice of Russia

      I'd agree with everything you said there in principle.

      Doesn't change the fact that, coming from someone well known for a very pro-Russian standpoint, it smacks a lot of a convenient excuse for distraction, whataboutery and further exploitation of division.

      Our new enemy's old enemy is not our friend, and the only difference between the pro-US (*) supporters you describe as "quislings" elsewhere and repeaters of pro-Russian propaganda like yourself is which enemy country you're being a "quisling" on behalf of.

      (*) Or at least, insufficiently anti-US/pro-Russian.

  2. Pascal Monett Silver badge

    Russian hacktivists

    They haven't done muck to help take over Ukraine in the last four years of the 3-week "special military operation", now have they ?

    Instead of whining about Russian hacktivists, the USA would do better to harden access to its infrastructure - which is only something that specialists have been warning about for about a decade, at a minimum.

    It's no use going to cry about your security if your lock is 100 years old and can be picked with a hairpin.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Russian hacktivists

      Why should the USA harden it's infrastructure? This is about the activities of it's ally, Russia, against British infrastructure.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        @AC - Re: Russian hacktivists

        You mean British infrastructure in Ukraine ?

    2. Roland6 Silver badge

      Re: Russian hacktivists

      Why harden when you have the courts…

      It seems we are overdue the US seeking to extradite a teenager for accessing their secure military systems using only the tools readily available to a teenager with Asbergers…

  3. elsergiovolador Silver badge

    Water

    They say water is wet, but think pigs fly in the sky.

    This is WTF level of incompetence. Have they heard of Cloud Act? Do they know the US administration is compromised by Russia?

    Do they know very much all government systems are open for US Security Services to be rummaged through without their knowledge?

    Just wow.

  4. VoiceOfTruth Silver badge

    Russia was our ally against Nazi Germany. Four seconds later, Britain wanted to be at war with Russia again.

    Russia has never invaded Britain. Britain has invaded Russia several times.

    1. Ken G Silver badge

      The USSR was Nazi Germany's ally against Poland. Later it was the UK's ally against Nazi Germany. Later still it was the occupier of half of Europe and a threat to the rest of it. After than it disintegrated.

      Russia isn't the USSR. Russia is a little post-Soviet runt state trading on obsolete weapons and cheap oil.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Go on!

        Live your dreams to the max!

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Can you please make up your mind ?

        If Russia is the little post-soviet state how you put it, how comes Western governments are terrifying their citizens with the prospect of Russia invading all the continent up to the Atlantic Ocean (after Ukraine, it will be our turn because Russia will not stop).

        Which one is it ?

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Can you please make up your mind ?

          Because if it one thing russia is good at its destroying things. They dont have to win, only destroy other countries.

        2. Ken G Silver badge

          Re: Can you please make up your mind ?

          No one is suggesting Russia will invade "all the continent" but Putin has said his goals include the Baltic states and 1917 borders. An invasion of one EU state is an invasion of all and with NATO being torn apart by Trump, Russia may bet that the US (or Britain) may not engage to defend Estonia or Lithuania and certainly wouldn't to defend Moldova.

      3. VoiceOfTruth Silver badge

        As half of Europe did nothing to stop Nazi Germany, I am not surprised that Russia occupied half of Europe. The small matter of 20 million Russians murdered by Germany.

        You need a history lesson. Get your knowledge from somewhere other than Fox non-News.

        1. elsergiovolador Silver badge

          Comrade, millions of Russians would not have died if the USSR had not enabled Hitler, encouraged his aggression, and then joined him as an ally under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. The war did not fall from the sky. The Soviet leadership helped start it.

          Those deaths were the consequence of that choice.

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Wow, talk about who needs a history lesson....

          20 million murdered by stalin and his henchmen you mean. There has never been a less effecient army than the red one and there drunk officers.

        3. Ken G Silver badge

          Millions of Soviet citizens died in WW2. Disproportionately those in what's now Belarus and Ukraine (though many would have been counted as Polish in 1939) not just Russian. Millions of those can be chalked up to Stalin not solely his pal Hitler. Good leadership and tactics other than scorched earth and human wave would have preserved many.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Russia is the enemy. China is the enemy. Iran is the enemy."

    What else would we expect to hear from those pushing the official western narrative?

    The UK turfed Huawei out simply because America said that. Even though GCHQ could find no evidence of it.

    Meanwhile America has rejected the norms of international law, is running campaigns of regime change, engaged in murder and piracy on the high seas, is threatening western allies and Nato members, punishing the UK and those who won't do as the American dictatorship demands. Military forces stand ready to be deployed on American streets against American citizens.

    "America is our friend."

    ROTFLMAO.

  6. Jason Bloomberg Silver badge
    Big Brother

    Hype and tripe

    "Pro-Russia hacktivists of all stripes are known for overblowing the impact of their digital nuisance-making, the NCSC said, and regularly make false and/or misleading claims about the results of attacks on CNI organizations, dressing up minor intrusions as DEFCON 1-grade carnage".

    And how about NCSC and the rest of the propaganda intelligence community?

  7. Long John Silver Silver badge
    Pirate

    Firewalls burn down

    Wouldn't the "UK's cyber crew" do better by not chasing phantoms and concentrating upon teaching public services and private enterprise how better to protect itself from malicious attack, regardless of its assumed origin?

    I don't grasp why so much IT internal to an organisation must face the public Internet. Shouldn't sensitive information, e.g. staff and client data, be under greater protection than seemingly permeable firewalls? That would entail air gaps between key datasets and the Internet.

    Yes, the flow of information would be slowed. More human input would be required for shifting vital information around on paper or on electronic physical storage media. 'Slowing' is anathema to simpletons wedded to 'profit maximisation' and instant decision-taking; most of the time all is well but, as Marks and Spencer discovered to its immense cost, a slip up is potentially deadly dangerous.

    1. VoiceOfTruth Silver badge

      Re: Firewalls burn down

      If NCSC was serious about this, it should state: NO MORE CISCO. And No More American 'firewalls' full stop.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Firewalls burn down

      @Long_John_Silver

      See: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/sep/20/jaguar-land-rover-hack-factories-cybersecurity-jlr

      Quote: "Being a carmaker where ‘everything is connected’ has left JLR unable to isolate its plants or functions, forcing a shutdown of most systems"

      Huh......"firewalls"..................

      Clearly Tata Consulting thinks that "everything is connected" is MUCH better than "firewalls".

      And clearly Tata Central is VERY HAPPY that the UK TAXPAYER subsequently under-wrote a 1.5 BILLION POUND loan!!!!

      Why bother with "firewalls" (or any other security architecture) when you've got the UK TAXPAYER to take up the slack?

      1. Roland6 Silver badge

        Re: Firewalls burn down

        > "Being a carmaker where ‘everything is connected’ has left JLR unable to isolate its plants or functions, forcing a shutdown of most systems"

        Translation: the system architects we employed were sh*t at their job and our developers/integrators are lazy

        It is possible to design and build highly connected enterprise IT systems with good B2B security. However, it does take discipline and being unpopular with developers who seem to think running everything with root/admin privileges is good practise.

  8. This post has been deleted by its author

  9. amanfromMars 1 Silver badge

    Matters generally specific and gravely to be regarded for IT delivering ab fab fabless exploits

    With particular and peculiar regard to all present-day UKGBNI politically inept and financially bankrupt and intellectually challenged leaderships fronting with weasel-worded and lily-livered ministries for 0day vulnerability jousts with timid cuckolded media puppets and muppets ..... and there are more than just a few sad and mad and bad wannabe wearers of that clowns' crown of thorns ..... beware of the bear pit bullshit trap.

    If you set out to be liked, you will be prepared to compromise on anything at any time [and be compromised], and you will achieve nothing [and very quickly be justifiably despised and eventually deposed and ideally prosecuted]? ....... Margaret Thatcher [amfM]

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