In a new move supporting Ukraine, the international hacktivist group Anonymous has released a data leak targeting Russian networks, allies, and global operations.
Anonymous claims the leaked content reveals:
- Internal documents from companies still doing business with Russia despite sanctions.
- Details about Kremlin-affiliated assets held in foreign countries.
- Profiles of pro-Russian officials and entities supporting Russian activities.
- Files allegedly connected to Donald Trump, though their credibility remains under scrutiny.
Since the full-scale invasion began, Anonymous has conducted multiple cyberattacks against Russian targets. This leak represents their latest campaign.
“This isn’t just about servers and firewalls. This is about revealing the networks that fund and support aggression,” reads a message from an Anonymous-affiliated account.
More hype than substance? Experts question impact
According to Forbes, these Anonymous hacks don’t have the same impact as in the past.
“In reality, there will be little surprise that Russian officials are allegedly corrupt or that they have deep ties to the West,” the publication reads.
Cybernews reports that “from what files have been examined so far, the overall consensus seems to be that the leaked info is simply not that exciting, and apparently not that secret.”
“We’re talking about a massive, unfiltered data drop. It could expose wrongdoing — but it can also spark confusion or be exploited for misinformation,” warned Lila Novak, a digital forensics expert at CyberShield Group.
The data cache is reportedly nowhere near the claimed 10 terabytes in size. Emma Best from DDOSecrets issued a scathing critique on BlueSky: “Claims impossible data without explanation. Releases less than 2% of what they say they have. Data looks like a scrape of existing releases.”
Potential value for Ukrainian forces
Despite skepticism, some analysts note the data could still be useful. As one observer, cited by Forbes, pointed out, “mostly the information in the archive is specific to individual companies in Russia, with folders for them and random PDFs for each company. This archive may be useful to the UKR armed forces since there are hundreds of PDFs on defense companies in Russia.”
The leak may contain information similar to what Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence claimed it obtained in March 2024 from Russia’s Ministry of Defense database, which helped identify Russian military personnel and structure.
As investigations continue, some Reddit users caution against downloading the files due to potential malware concerns. They describe the hack as “a high-tech version of looting” that might contain either trivial information or valuable intelligence.
