North Macedonia Says Bomb Threats Come From Russia, Crypto Used To Hide Origin –
North Macedonia’s government believes an ongoing wave of bogus bomb threats against public targets in the country is coming from Russia and Iran. The authorities in Skopje also say that payments related to the attacks with cryptocurrency were made to cover tracks.
Over 700 facilities in North Macedonia targeted with bomb threats, attackers used crypto
The Balkan state of North Macedonia has received bomb threats, allegedly from Russia and Iran, according to a senior government official. On Monday, Interior Minister Oliver Spasovski said authorities are working hard to protect the country’s security systems.
“This is an intense hybrid attack targeting more than 720 facilities since October 19,” Spasovski revealed. Quoted by Turkey’s Anadolu Agency, he pointed out that some of these cases have already been resolved. “We now have an isolated group and the case is being worked on,” Spasovski added, explaining:
In the past few days, emails have been sent from addresses in Iran and Russia, as well as payments to VPN [virtual private network] Cryptocurrency services, making tracking difficult.
North Macedonia, Serbia and neighboring Montenegro have seen numerous bomb threats since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began on February 24 last year. So far, all have turned out to be false positives.
In the past two months, shopping malls and other public buildings have been the main targets of such threats, with work and education often halted for days, the report said.
Serbian authorities have claimed that foreign intelligence agencies of Ukraine and an unidentified European Union member state were behind the threats. Russia and Iran have yet to comment on the allegations.
Both sides in the Russo-Ukrainian war have used cryptocurrencies to fund their military efforts. According to one dated BlockchainAccording to a report released by forensic firm Elliptic on the first anniversary of the conflict, Ukrainian supporters have sent at least $212 million in crypto donations, while pro-Russian groups have raised nearly $5 million in digital assets.
Do you think these bomb threats are related to the war in Ukraine? Do share your thoughts on this topic in the comments section below.
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Source: Crypto News Deutsch
