Two teenagers in the Netherlands face charges that they allegedly spied for pro-Russia hackers.
The 17-year-old boys were reportedly arrested last week, according to news reports. One of the boys allegedly walked past the offices of Europol, Eurojust and the Canadian embassy in The Hague carrying a WiFi sniffer, in an apparent attempt to intercept WiFi traffic, according to the BBC.
The Dutch teens were allegedly contacted by pro-Russian hackers on Telegram. The father of one of the boys told the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf that police had arrested his son while he was doing his homework. The teenager was said to be computer savvy and fascinated by hacking, and he held a part-time job at a supermarket.
The man said police told him that the arrest was centered on espionage and rendering services to a foreign country. The Jerusalem Post reported that the two were arrested “on suspicions that are linked to government-sponsored interference,” quoting a prosecution spokesperson who said he could not provide further details because the suspects are minors.
The teenagers appeared in court last week, where the judge ordered that one boy be remanded to custody and the other placed on strict home bail conditions until a court hearing, which is expected to take place in early-to-mid-October.
Dutch Teens Part of a Growing Trend of Russian Spying, Sabotage
The arrest of the Dutch teens is part of a growing trend of Russian actors allegedly recruiting foreign proxies for a range of activities – claims that have been denied by Russia.
De Telegraaf cited incidents in Germany, where Kremlin actors allegedly recruited German citizens for activities like vandalism, arson, or capturing video of government infrastructure.
The Guardian reported in June that Russia was recruiting unwitting suicide bombers in Ukraine to detonate bombs under the pretense of mild vandalism, recording video or other seemingly more benign acts.
The UK has had multiple incidents, including three arrests earlier this month on suspicion of spying for Russia.
Last year, the head of MI5, Sir Ken McCallum, said “Russian state actors” were “turning to proxies for their dirty work, including private intelligence operatives and criminals from both the UK and third countries,” according to the BBC.
“The GRU in particular is on a sustained mission to generate mayhem on British and European streets: we’ve seen arson, sabotage and more,” McCallum added.
BBC Reporter Reports Ransomware Bribe Attempt
But another report today served as a reminder that nation-states aren’t the only ones recruiting proxies; cybercriminals do it too. BBC cyber correspondent Joe Tidy reported that he was offered 15% of any ransom in exchange for helping the Medusa ransomware group infiltrate his company’s network – and the offer went up from there.
“A chilling insight into the ever-evolving tactics of cyber criminals and one that has highlighted a whole area of risk to organisations that I didn’t truly appreciate until I myself was on the receiving end,” Tidy concluded.
