Ukraine says Russian hackers are targeting country’s defense contractors

Ukraine’s Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-UA) said in a report published over the weekend that a hacking group has been targeting the country’s defense and military companies with phishing attacks. 

The CERT identified the hacking group as UAC-0185 — also known as UNC4221 — without saying who was behind the group. Earlier this year, however, a cybersecurity company linked that group to the Russian government. 

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The hackers have been sending emails pretending to be the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (ULIE), which calls itself “Ukraine’s largest union of business organizations and economic agents.” The emails were designed to look like an invitation to a real conference that took place in Kiev last week, and were sent ahead of the conference, according to CERT-UA. 

The hackers are targeting employees working for Ukraine’s defense contractors and defense forces, per CERT-UA. 

Cybersecurity publication The Record has more details about this hacking campaign and group.

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