'Anonymous' group takes down three Russian news websites after attacking Kremlin-backed channel RT

Source: Daily Mail

Anonymous collective have taken down three Russian news agency websites after attacking Kremlin-backed channel RT.

The elusive computer experts have hacked TASS, Fontanka and Kommersant, with error messages showing up on the sites when they are accessed.

It comes after Anonymous declared 'cyber war' against Vladimir Putin's government after he mounted a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

#Anonymous message to Vladimir Putin pic.twitter.com/eIy9YpDvM5

— Anonymous (@LatestAnonPress) February 27, 2022

When trying to access Fontanka, a message signed by Anonymous urges citizens to 'stop this madness' and says Vladimir Putin has 'put us in danger'.

The message claims they will be 'fired' or 'jailed' for their actions but adds that they 'can't take it anymore'.

It reads: 'Dear citizens. We urge you to stop this madness, do not send your sons and husbands to certain death. Putin makes us lie and puts us in danger.

'We were isolated from the whole world, they stopped buying oil and gas. In a few years we will live like in North Korea.

'What is it for us? To put Putin in the textbooks? This is not our war, let's stop it!

'This message will be deleted, and some of us will be fired or even jailed. But we can't take it anymore.

'Indifferent journalists of Russia.'

Error messages were also seen on TASS and Kommersant's websites on Monday morning.

It comes after Anonymous declared 'cyber war' against Vladimir Putin's government after he mounted a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The hacking group issued the stark announcement on their Twitter account on Thursday evening.

They said shortly before 10 pm: 'The Anonymous collective is officially in cyber war against the Russian government.'

Around 30 minutes later, they announced that they had taken down the website of the Kremlin-backed TV channel RT, which broadcasts in Britain and has been heavily criticized for its coverage.

When MailOnline attempted to access the site this morning, it was still inaccessible and only displayed an error message that said 'this site can't be reached'.

The cyber war declaration raises the prospect that Russia could be subjected to systematic hacking attempts in the coming days.

Prior to the invasion of Ukraine on Thursday, the country's government and banks were targeted by a massive cyber attack that was believed to have been carried out by Russia.

People on social media responded positively to Anonymous's cyber war declaration against Putin.

One person wrote: 'THANK YOU! Now, work on draining their finances.'

Another said: 'You are awesome, thanks.'

A third wrote: 'THANK YOU! I love you! The most beautiful thing EVER...'

Anonymous said in their tweet about RT: 'The #Anonymous collective has taken down the website of the #Russian propaganda station RT News.'

Anonymous have previously targeted groups including the Ku Klux Klan and Islamic extremists.

Members are known as 'Anons' and are distinguished by their Guy Fawkes masks.

In July last year, the collective warned Tesla founder Elon Musk that they planned to target him after saying he wields too much power over the cryptocurrency markets.

THE ELUSIVE HACKING GROUP ANONYMOUS

Hacker group Anonymous has been linked to online attacks around the world aimed at punishing governments for policies of which the hackers disapprove.

Members are known as 'Anons' and are distinguished by their Guy Fawkes masks.

The group is seen as anything from digital Robin Hoods to cyber terrorists for their hacking campaigns against government agencies, child pornography sites and the Klu Klux Klan.

In 2008 the online community staged a series of protests, pranks, and hacks on the Church of Scientology as part if its 'Project Chanology.'

Later targets of Anonymous 'hacktivism' included government agencies of the US, Israel, Tunisia, Uganda, and others, copyright protection agencies; the Westboro Baptist Church; and corporations such as PayPal, MasterCard, Visa, and Sony.

In 2013 they declared war on secretive 'chat sites' used by pedophiles to trade images.

Last November they hacked into the Twitter account of the Ku Klux Klan after the white supremacist group distributed flyers threatening 'lethal force' protesters in Ferguson.

Dozens of people have been arrested for involvement in Anonymous cyberattacks, in countries including the US, UK, Australia, the Netherlands, Spain, and Turkey.