Russia Biggest Source Of Cyber Attacks:Sweden's Intelligence Agency

Sweden’s foreign intelligence agency considers Russia as the biggest source of cyber attacks and influence operations against the country.  

The head of the Swedish Military Intelligence and Security Service (Must) said, “It is pretty easy for me to say that many of the activities we are subject to have a clear sender, they can be traced more or less directly.”

“It can be about spreading false information, bending the truth, and emphasizing some arguments more than others to make it difficult to get a clearer picture of what is happening,” the head, Major General Gunnar Karlson was quoted as saying by The Local Se reported today.

Must is the branch of the Swedish Armed Forces that is the main foreign intelligence agency in the country. Its head spoke during an interview with SVT’s Agenda show on Sunday evening about Russian attempts to influence Sweden.

Cyber attacks which among other things attempt to gain access to intelligence are ongoing and have long taken place, he claimed.

“It is a serious threat because in different ways they can push themselves in to the very foundations of a democracy and influence democratic decision-making,” Karlson noted.

The Must head explained that his agency often sees influence operations (operations focusing on affecting the behaviors of groups or populations) targeted against Sweden, citing the example of a falsified letter purporting to have been written by Swedish Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist.