Pro-Ukrainian hackers from the Cyber Partisans group of Ukrainians and Belarusians together with the Silent Crow organization carried out a large-scale cyberattack on Russia’s national airline Aeroflot, destroying its internal IT infrastructure and severely disrupting operations.
Aeroflot’s website, booking system, ticket offices, and fuel calculation systems went offline.
The airline was forced to cancel nearly 50 flights as a result.
“We spent a year inside their corporate network, gradually expanding access and working our way into the very core of their infrastructure,” the hackers said in a statement.
According to the hackers, around 7,000 physical and virtual servers were destroyed and about 20 terabytes of data was wiped out.
“All of these resources are now either inaccessible or permanently wiped. Recovery could cost tens of millions of dollars. The damage is strategic,” they said.
Most of Aeroflot’s data is believed to be lost for good. The hackers claim they exfiltrated numerous databases, employee communications, internal emails, and more.
“We’re helping Ukrainians fight the occupiers by paralyzing Russia’s largest airline and inflicting massive losses,” Cyber Partisans said.
Silent Crow added that they plan to begin publishing some of the obtained data soon.
“We didn’t just destroy the infrastructure — we left a mark. The personal data of all Russians who’ve ever flown with Aeroflot is now on a journey of its own — one-way and without baggage.”
Economic experts warn that the fallout could significantly impact Aeroflot’s finances. In a post by the CASE Ukraine project The Cost of the State, analysts said the worst-case scenario could result in the loss of a major portion of the airline’s yearly profit.
“This not only casts doubt on Aeroflot’s modernization plans but could also affect the company’s recently approved dividend payout — its first in five years,” the analysis said.
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