According to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the threat group responsible for the attacks are known as Star Blizzard, and have been linked to Centre 18, a unit within Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). The group’s efforts span back to 2015. 

Since that time, the group has targeted UK politicians, universities, journalists, public sector entities, NGOs and other civil society organisations, through spear-phishing techniques. 

All of this is part of the wider effort to erode trust in the political processes in the UK, especially ahead of next year’s general election. 

“We saw the lengths Russian state actors went to in order to impact the US elections in 2016 with sophisticated spear phishing campaigns,” said Elliott Wilkes, chief technology officer at Advanced Cyber Defence Systems (ACDS).

“The reporting of ‘the amplification of selective sensitive information’ should act as a warning to us all about the sources of information we view and what we choose to trust,” commented Adam Pilton, former cybersecurity law enforcement agent and Cybersecurity consultant at CyberSmart.

“In the run-up to the election, the spread of disinformation will likely dramatically increase and with this being the first UK (and US) election in which AI is in existence, we must be aware of this.”

To counter the threat, the NCSC, in coordination with the United States, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, has issued a comprehensive cybersecurity advisory which includes technical details on the attackers’ methods and provides guidance on defence strategies.

The NCSC has also released new guidelines tailored for high-risk individuals, including politicians and journalists, to enhance their resilience against potential cyber-threats.

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“Defending our democratic processes is an absolute priority for the NCSC and we condemn any attempt which seeks to interfere or undermine our values,” said Paul Chichester, NCSC director of operations.

“Russia’s use of cyber operations to further its attempts at political interference is wholly unacceptable and we are resolute in calling out this pattern of activity with our partners.”

According to the NCSC, the uncovered malicious activities are part of a broader pattern of cyber operations conducted by Russian Intelligence Services on a global scale. The Star Blizzard group, also known as Callisto Group, Cold River, and formerly Seaborgium, had been previously detailed by the NCSC earlier this year.