Who the IT ARMY of Ukraine are and how they hack Russians: a talk with a hackers’ supervisor

Author

Artur Gmyria

Who the IT ARMY of Ukraine are: a talk with a hackers’ supervisor

The IT ARMY of Ukraine includes approximately 10,000 Ukrainian hackers who conduct systematic and massive attacks on Russian government institutions, financial services, and propagandist media, inflicting damage and pain on Russians.

The IT Army of Ukraine has a website and a channel on Telegram, which is the community’s main communication platform, where tasks are assigned and the results of cyber attacks are published. Everyone can take part in the cyber war, even without necessarily having tech skills.

SPEKA spoke with a supervisor from the ІТ ARMY who goes by the nickname Ted. summarizes the most interesting points from the interview.

What the IT ARMY is and what it does

The main purpose of the IT ARMY is to contribute to the defense of our country in cyberspace.

"The priorities are defined by our mission, which is to support Ukraine in the war by exhausting the aggressor’s resources. So we focus on the targets that can have the maximum impact on the Russian economy, which are crucial financial institutions, infrastructure, and government services," says a hackers’ supervisor.

They also try to block enemy media propaganda.

A report of an attack on Russian customs systems, one of the many proofs of operations the IT ARMY posts online

The largest attack by the IT ARMY against Russia during the war

"One of the most successful and significant operations of the IT ARMY was an attack on Evotor online cash registers at the end of last year. This is an example of how a focused and well-planned cyber operation can deal a serious blow to the enemy’s economic stability and confidence."

The hackers disrupted the operation of payment terminals of Russia’s largest cash register producer for several days, disabling cashless payments in Russian stores.

"This operation affected nearly a million retailers and could cause billions in damage to the aggressor’s economy," Ted says.

Other heavy-impact attacks targeted banks, 1C and Bitrix systems, and other key elements of Russian infrastructure. Each of these operations was aimed at inflicting maximum damage on the Russian economy and decreasing the aggressor’s military and financial resources.

The number of active members of the IT ARMY

"We estimate the current strength of the IT ARMY to be up to 10,000 hacktivists actively engaged in our operations. This is about 7–8% of all our subscribers on Telegram," Ted says.

According to him, the IT ARMY conducts several operations a week on average, but the number may vary.

The Russian cyber defenses are getting stronger, but the IT ARMY is also improving

They have seen a significant improvement in Russian cyber defenses since the IT ARMY started operating, but it also encourages Ukrainian hackers to improve and innovate.

"However, when the enemy is forced to invest in cyber security instead of tanks and planes, this also contributes to the scattering of their efforts," Ted argues.

The cooperation between the IT ARMY and Ukrainian security services

"We can confirm that our work involves performing special tasks, which are set from the perspective of national security."

They seek to deepen cooperation with these agencies, as combining efforts and resources can significantly increase the effectiveness of operations against the Russian Federation.