Security News > 2022 > June > ‘Killnet’ Adversary Pummels Lithuania with DDoS Attacks Over Blockade

Russia-linked cyber collective Killnet has claimed responsibility for DDoS attacks Monday on the Lithuanian government and other entities in the Baltic country over closure of transit routes within the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, according to researchers.

On Monday, Lithuania's National Cyber Security Center under the Ministry of National Defense warned of intense and ongoing DDoS attacks against Lithuania's Secure National Data Transfer Network as well as other governmental institutions and private companies in the country.

Russia-based Killnet apparently launched the attacks in response to the Lithuanian government's announcement on June 18 that it would close routes between the Baltic country and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad for transport of steel and other metals, according to Flashpoint, which published a blog post by the Flashpoint team on the attacks Monday.

On its Telegram channel, Killnet claimed that it would stop the attacks as soon as the Lithuanian government reinstates transit routes with Kaliningrad, according to Flashpoint.

A spokesperson for Killnet group also told Reuters it plans to continue attacks until the blockade is lifted, adding that it has already "Demolished 1652 web resources-and that's just so far."

DDoS attacks have been a typical weapon of choice for Russian cyber actors since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with Russian threat actors using them both before the war on the ground started and after alongside other cyber-attacks to support military operations.

News URL

https://threatpost.com/killnet-pummels-lithuania/180075/