U.S. sanctions imposed against Russian state-backed hacktivist operation Cyber Army of Russia Reborn's leader Yuliya Pankratova and primary hacker Denis Degtyarenko for their involvement in critical infrastructure cyberattacks were dismissed by Russia's embassy in the U.S. as a propaganda campaign against Kremlin, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
"Forming an impenetrable atmosphere of Russophobia is one of Washington's favorite methods," said the Russian Embassy, which also attributed the intrusions to the suspension of information security cooperation between the U.S. and Russia. Such sanctions have been welcomed by the Cyber Army as recognition of its efforts as Russia continues to deny cyberattack and cyberespionage involvement accusations. Allegations of Russian cyberespionage brought up by Australia earlier this month were noted by the Russian Embassy to incite "anti-Russian paranoia," while Germany's claims of Russian cyberattacks against the country's IT, defense, and aerospace firms were dismissed as "unproven and unfounded."
