Russian hackers' latest target is President Vladimir Putin. It disrupted the head of state's annual phone-in as it faced "cyberattacks," the country's major telco provider confirmed. 

Russian Hackers Target President Vladimir Putin’s Phone-In
(Photo : ALEXEY DRUZHININ/AFP via Getty Images)
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin listens to a question during his annual televised phone-in show in Moscow on December 3, 2009. Putin urged "very tough" measures against terrorism, as he sought to assure Russians shocked by a deadly train bombing that killed dozens of people. AFP PHOTO / RIA NOVOSTI / POOL / ALEXEY DRUZHININ.

The Russian president does an annual session on state-run television wherein he answers real-time questions from the Russian citizens. 

According to Reuters, the phone-in for 2021 tackled inflation, COVID-19 vaccination, and even his possible successor. In total, the broadcast lasted for almost four hours. 

However, calls from remote or far-flung locations in Russia faced some hiccups.

Russian Hackers and President Vladimir Putin's Phone-In 

The news anchor of the state-run television notified President Putin during the broadcast that their phone-in is "facing attacks, powerful DDoS attacks." 

It came after a Kuzbass citizen faced connection issues as he queried the Russian leader in the broadcast. The TV presenter then figured that hackers from the Kuzbass region were behind the choppy phone call. 

As a response, President Putin was shocked, and could not believe that a Russian hacker would take time to infiltrate their phone-in session. 

Putin said in Russian: "Are you joking? Seriously?" 

Russian Hacking on Putin's Phone-In Confirmed 

It turns out that the phone-in hacking incident actually occurred, even as the Russian President questioned its legitimacy.

NDTV reported that Rostelecom, the largest telecom provider in the country, confirmed that the interview faced cyberattacks. Additionally, the company assured that they are taking action to avoid the incident from happening again. 

Until now, the motive behind the attacks remains unknown, Putin Spokesman, Dmitry Peskov told a local news outlet. 

Read Also: Russian Hacker Site Maza Gets Hacked: Usernames, Email Ads, and Passwords Compromised

Putin and Social Media

Although Putin did not mention anything about cyberattacks in his phone-in, he barred information about how social media platforms disobey the demands of the Russian laws. 

The Russian leader pointed out that social networks have been an avenue for child pornography to proliferate, as well as violence, such as suicide and how-to videos on Molotov weapons production. 

On November 19, 2020, Russia hinted at blocking social media giants, including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, for specifically censoring and discriminating against state-run media companies. 

The Russian lawmakers then declared that they are blocking services, regardless of what company, if they censor the Kremlin-favoring media outlets. 

Elsewhere, the Russian spy chief, Sergei Naryshkin, said that he is flattered that their country is suspected to be behind the SolarWinds Cyberattack, dubbed as the largest and most sophisticated attack. However, he denied such accusations, adding that it is against his will to steal credit from others. 

Related Article: Putin: Russia Will Register World's First COVID-19 Vaccine 'in a Few Days' Despite Experts Calling It a 'Pandora Box'

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Written by Teejay Boris 

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