UK and EU attribute Poland power grid attack to Russia’s FSB, urge critical infrastructure action

As noted by The Register, the UK and European Union have formally attributed a December 2025 cyberattack on Poland's power grid to Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), specifically its Centre 16 division. This attribution has prompted urgent calls for critical infrastructure organizations to implement enhanced security measures.

The attack, which occurred in December 2025, targeted Poland's power grid with the intent to disrupt communication between renewable energy hardware and power distribution operators. Although ultimately unsuccessful in causing widespread disruption, the attackers attempted to deploy the destructive DynoWiper malware, a tactic associated with Russian state-backed operations. The UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and its international partners have highlighted that organizations in sectors such as communications, defense, energy, financial services, government, and healthcare are most at risk.

Key recommended mitigations include disabling SNMPv1 and SNMPv2 in favor of SNMPv3 with authPriv, and disabling Cisco Smart Install on all devices. These measures aim to counter tactics like scanning for devices with vulnerable SNMP versions and exploiting Cisco devices. In parallel, the UK and EU have imposed fresh sanctions on Russian individuals and entities, including GRU officials and cybercriminals, for their roles in supporting Russian state aggression and cyber operations.

Source: The Register