Two Dutch teenage boys aged 17, reportedly used hacking devices to spy for Russia, have been arrested by the Politie on Monday.
According to De Telegraaf, the two used a WiFi sniffer device near Europol and Eurojust offices, as well as the Canadian embassy in The Hague.
BleepingComputer has contacted Europol to confirm the reports, and a spokesperson acknowledged the incident, noting there are no signs of a compromise on the agency’s systems.
“We are in close contact with the Dutch authorities regarding this case. Europol has a robust security infrastructure in place, and there is no indication that our systems have been compromised. We take the security of our operations and staff extremely seriously and continue to work closely with our partners to address any potential risks.” – Europol spokesperson.
The boys were recruited over Telegram and were arrested following a tip from the country’s intelligence service, the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD).
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Russian agencies reach out online and (at least promise to) pay some money. It’s as simple as that. They’re called low-level agents.
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I’m not a computer expert, nor an expert in espionage or intelligence services. What is pretty well known though is that the FSB has the means to reach out to young people in Europe to make them do illegal stuff (spying, sabotage…) on their behalf for maybe a couple hundred Dollars.
And the idea that European secret services cannot pinpoint the guys behind those activities because the Russians are using VPN servers is pretty cute.
I mean, use some basic critical thinking here man. Who else could be here? Sure would be nice to see conrete evidence but it’s not a stretch to trust the Dutch inteligence here either.