US charges four Russian hackers over cyber-attacks on global energy sector

The US has unveiled criminal charges against four Russian government officials, saying they engaged in two major hacking campaigns between 2012 and 2018 that targeted the global energy sector and affected thousands of computers across 135 countries.

The three accused Russians in that case are Pavel Aleksandrovich Akulov, 36, Mikhail Mikhailovich Gavrilov, 42, and Marat Valeryevich Tyukov, 39.

A department official told reporters on Thursday that even though the hacking at issue in the two cases occurred years ago, investigators remained concerned Russia will continue to launch similar attacks.

US officials have been tracking the case and its aftershocks ever since.

In 2019, those behind Triton were reported to be scanning and probing at least 20 electric utilities in the United States for vulnerabilities.