Denmark blames Russia for destructive cyberattack on water utility

Published:

19 december 2025 om 12:28:48

Alert date:

19 december 2025 om 13:02:20

Source:

bleepingcomputer.com

Critical Infrastructure, Data Breach & Exfiltration

Danish intelligence officials have attributed cyberattacks against Denmark's critical water utility infrastructure to Russia. The attacks are characterized as part of Moscow's broader hybrid warfare campaign targeting Western nations' critical infrastructure. This represents a significant escalation in state-sponsored cyber operations against essential services that could impact civilian populations. The targeting of water utilities demonstrates Russia's willingness to attack critical infrastructure that directly affects public safety and daily life.

Technical details

Danish intelligence attributed cyberattacks on critical infrastructure to two Russian state-backed groups: Z-Pentest responsible for destructive attacks on water utilities, and NoName057(16) responsible for DDoS attacks targeting Denmark ahead of local elections. The attacks are part of Russia's hybrid warfare campaign against Western nations supporting Ukraine. Similar incidents occurred in Norway where hackers gained control of critical operational systems and opened outflow valves at a dam.

Mitigation steps:

Organizations should refer to the CISA joint advisory issued December 10th with FBI, NSA, and European Cybercrime Centre warning about pro-Russia hacktivist groups targeting critical infrastructure worldwide. Denmark's foreign office summoned the Russian ambassador for clarifications on the incidents.

Affected products:

Danish water utility systems
Danish critical infrastructure
Norwegian dam operational systems