Ukrainian IT Army Operates, Attacks Belarusian Train Network Used To Transport Russian Troops

JAKARTA - Ukraine's "IT (information technology) army" of volunteer hackers announced a new set of targets on Thursday, March 3. These new targets include the Belarusian rail network and the Russian-made satellite-based navigation system, GLONASS.

"We need to mobilize and intensify our efforts as much as possible", said a post on the "IT Army" Telegram channel.

The post lists the top priorities targeted by the group, including Belarusian railways, Russian telecommunications companies, and GLONASS, which is Russia's alternative to the Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite navigation network.

According to a Reuters report, Ukraine has enlisted underground hackers in its country to help protect critical infrastructure and carry out cyber-espionage missions against Russian troops. Even Kyiv has also announced the formation of an "IT army" on Saturday, February 26.

A team of hackers is now starting to focus on attacking Belarus. This neighboring country has been used as a major hacking post for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the so-called Belarusian Cyber ​​Partisans.

The group told Reuters on Tuesday, March 1 that it had disabled the rail traffic system there and attacked the network because it had been used to transport Russian troops.

Russia has called its invasion of Ukraine a "special operation" that it says was designed not to occupy territory but to destroy the military capabilities of its southern neighbor and capture what it considers dangerous nationalists.