KEY POINTS

  • Anonymous continuously launches cyberattacks against Russia
  • It recently hacked into hundreds of surveillance cameras in the country
  • It describes this move as "mainly a large anti-propaganda movement"

Anonymous has carried out another set of attacks against Russia, this time involving mass sending of anti-war, anti-propaganda text messages and hacking more than 400 public cameras.

The decentralized international activist and hacktivist collective and movement has successfully hacked into more than 400 public surveillance cameras scattered across Russia. The purpose of this recent hack is for them to "spread information to the Russian people," Hackread reported.

Anonymous describes this move as "mainly a large anti-propaganda movement," according to the outlet. The latest hack allowed the executors to post messages against Russian President Vladimir Putin.

A child holds national flags of Russia and China prior to a welcoming ceremony for Russian President Vladimir Putin outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing
Representation. A child holds the national flags of Russia and China. Reuters / Kim Kyung Hoon

Anonymous also compiled live feeds from more than 100 Russian CCTV cameras and made these feeds available on a newly launched website. Hacked cameras are divided into different categories: Indoor, Outdoor, Business, Restaurants, Schools, Offices, Security Offices and Outdoor. These categories highlight the extensiveness of the said hack.

In one of the live feeds, Anonymous superimposed an English text that read, "Putin is killing children; 352 Ukraine civilians dead; Russians lied to 200RF.com; Slava Ukraine! Hacked by Anonymous."

The hacktivist collective also shared some of its plans to help Ukraine. "We are however working on cameras in Belarus, Ukraine, and closer to the Ukraine conflict in Russia, that will be used entirely for Recon for the Ukrainian military. That dump will come next," it revealed.

Anonymous then sent Russians a compelling message, saying, "If you are Russian, we just want you to know that you are being brainwashed by state propaganda, and the Kremlin and Putin are lying to you. Ukraine is not controlled by Nazis, they do not need you to 'free' them."

It added, "You need to fight back and free yourself from your Dictator. We realize this is scary, and easier said than done, but you will have the entire world behind you, supporting you and watching you. Do not give up home."

Moreover, Squad303, a newly formed digital army composed of Anonymous-associated programmers, has mass sent text messages to random mobile numbers in Russia. As of writing, the team has already sent a total of 7 million messages across the country.

Apparently, Squad303 developed a tool that allows non-technical individuals to #OpRussia. The campaign intends to inform Russians about the happenings in the country's invasion of Ukraine.

The campaign was able to send out 2 million text messages 48 hours following its launch last week. By March 8, the team had already accounted for 5 million text messages sent out.

In a video posted on Twitter, someone from Squad303 introduced the digital army, saying, "We are Squad303. We are a team of anonymous people. You wouldn't notice us in the store, on the street, or on the subway. You asked us many questions. We decided to answer them."

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Hacking