Russian hackers exploit weak router security to breach critical infrastructure, Western allies warn
Alena Butusava/Getty Images
ByDavid DiMolfetta,
Cybersecurity Reporter, Nextgov/FCW
July 13, 2026 03:34 PM ET
The guidance comes as the United Kingdom and European Union blamed a major Russian intelligence unit for an attempted attack on Poland’s power grid last year.
Russian state-backed hackers tied to Moscow’s FSB Federal Security Service are continuing to breach critical infrastructure networks around the world by exploiting routers and other networking devices protected by weak credentials or running outdated technology, the United States and 12 partner nations warned Monday.
The joint advisory said operators from FSB’s Center 16 signals intelligence unit have been working to opportunistically compromise infrastructure organizations across the communications, defense industrial base, energy, financial services, government facilities and health care sectors using the poor router configurations.
The advisory was issued by the NSA, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, FBI and Defense Department Cyber Crime Center, alongside agencies...
Copyright of this story solely belongs to nextgov.com. To see the full text click HERE
