MIVD Dutch intelligence warns of Russian, Chinese cyber espionage

The Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) warn of “worrying” cyber espionage activities carried out by Russia and China.

The Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) warn of “worrying” cyber espionage activities carried out by Russia and China.

The warning is included in the annual report published by the Dutch intelligence that cited as an example to attack against the world chemical weapons watchdog. On September 2018, Dutch intelligence services arrested two alleged Russian spies that were planning to hack a Swiss laboratory where there was ongoing an investigation of the poisoning of the spy Sergei Skripal.

In April 2018 the Dutch authorities expelled four alleged agents from Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency for trying to hack the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague.

According to the Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD), Russia is expanding its arsenal with cyber its cyber capabilities, Russia-linked APT groups are a threat to the Netherlands and all of European states.

The AIVD sent a tweet indicating that an (official) English translation of the Annual Report 2018 will be released in a few weeks.

The popular cyber security researcher Matthijs Koot, published an unofficial translation of the Annual Report 2018 of the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service (GISS, known in Dutch as AIVD)

The report described the cyber espionage activities carried out by foreign government “very worrying,” the Dutch news media outlet reported.

“The threat facing the armed forces is the theft of military technology and technological expertise, which can be used for both military and civil ends,”

“More and more countries are focusing on political and/or economic espionage. We see in our investigations that China, Iran and Russia are at the forefront of this. “

The way the Dutch intelligence disclosed the information is unusual, in the past counter-espionage operations were taken secret.

“That was necessary to increase the resilience of society, because less naivety means greater alertness to possible unwanted influences,” MIVD chief General Onno Eichelsheim said in the report.

The report pointed out that China was “actively attempting to gather military intelligence in the Netherlands”.

“The threat against defence is the stealing of military technological knowledge and technology that can be used both militarily and for civilian purposes.”

Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) also warn that Iran, North Korea, Pakistan and Syria were also seeking “knowledge and goods” for their own weapons programmes in the Netherlands and other western countrie.

Dutch intelligence is urging defence companies to reinforce their security to repeal the growing threats.

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Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – MIVD, intelligence)

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