Cyber Incident Victim: banderivets.org.ua
Date:
Feb 2014
Location:
Ukraine
Summary
Hacktivists disrupted multiple Ukrainian websites through distributed denial-of-service attacks, including the nationalist Right Sector's site, the parliamentary portal, and several Euromaidan support platforms. The targeted Right Sector, a militant group involved in anti-government protests, saw its site remain offline while the parliament's was restored. These cyberattacks occurred amid escalating political tensions following mass demonstrations against the government's rejection of a European Union agreement, with hacktivist groups targeting both pro-government and opposition entities during the unrest.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 1 motive | 1 technique |
| Threat Actors | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 2 actors | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
In late February 2014, hacktivist groups launched distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks against multiple Ukrainian websites, including the official parliamentary site (rada.gov.ua) and the Right Sector nationalist movement's domain (banderivets.org.ua). The Cyber Guerilla collective publicly claimed responsibility for disrupting these targets alongside several Euromaidan protest support platforms: maidansupport.com, maidanhelp.com.ua, helpmaidan.org.ua, and qha.com.ua. These coordinated attacks temporarily rendered the sites inaccessible to users. The Ukrainian parliament's website was restored within a short timeframe, but banderivets.org.ua and other affected Euromaidan resources remained offline at the time of reporting. The Right Sector, described as a militant group with borderline fascist ideologies, had been actively engaged in violent clashes with police during the Euromaidan protests. No technical details about the scale or duration of the DDoS campaigns were disclosed in available reports.
This cyber disruption occurred against the backdrop of escalating political violence in Ukraine following President Viktor Yanukovych's November 2013 decision to reject a European Union association agreement. The Euromaidan demonstrations, which began peacefully in Kyiv, had intensified by February 2014, culminating in the deadliest day of protests on February 20 when 77 protesters were killed. Hacktivist activities polarized during this period, with some groups supporting anti-government protesters while others aligned with Yanukovych's administration. Concurrently with the DDoS campaigns, Anonymous Ukraine leaked emails from the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform (UDAR) party and private correspondence of its leader Vitali Klitschko, revealing communications with Lithuanian presidential advisers. The website disruptions represented one facet of broader digital conflicts mirroring the physical confrontations occurring throughout Ukraine's political crisis.