Dutch intelligence links Russia to 2024 cyberattacks on police and allies

A previously unidentified Russian hacking group was responsible for 2024 cyberattacks targeting the Netherlands’ police networks, NATO and several European countries, Dutch intelligence services have revealed.

As reported by The Telegraph, the Dutch General Intelligence Agency and Military Agency stated that the group, known as Laundry Bear, likely operated with Russian state support.

"The cyberattacks against Dutch institutions are part of a larger international cyber threat posed by the hacker group," Dutch intelligence noted in a statement.

Intelligence officials highlighted that Laundry Bear also conducted cyber espionage against companies producing high-tech products. Russia is restricted from accessing these products due to Western sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine.

The statement added that the group sought information related to "the procurement and production of military equipment by Western governments and Western arms deliveries to Ukraine".

Notably, in late September 2024, Dutch intelligence and security services reported a hack compromising the work contact details – names, email addresses, and phone numbers – of nearly all 65,000 Dutch police officers. In some cases, personal data was also stolen.

The Dutch justice minister stated that the cyberattack had also affected some prosecutors, probation officers and lawyers, all of whom had been notified.

At the time, the Netherlands indicated that another state was behind the cyberattack.

In late April, the Dutch military intelligence agency reported that Russia was intensifying hybrid attacks aimed at destabilising society in the Netherlands and its European allies, with Russian hackers already targeting Dutch civil service systems.