March 04, 2023
In 2022, there have been a number of cyberattacks on the military and defense industries. The events illustrate how even good security systems are vulnerable to online attacks. The consequences can be severe and even life-threatening in a military context. This article lists the significant cyberattacks on the armed forces.

Cyber incident overview

Cyber attacks on the military and defense industry in 2022
License Creative Commons BY 4.0. Credits: KonBriefing Research
 
Diagram in high resolution (License: Creative Commons BY 4.0):
 

Which organizations were affected by a cyber attack?

 
#DateCountryCityStateCompanyTypeStichworte
1January 2022PolandMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Wojsko Polskie
2February 15, 2022UkraineKyivMinistry of DefenseDDoS attackArmed Forces, Military,Міністерство оборони України
3March 1, 2022RussiaMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Russian military
4March 16, 2022United KingdomLondonMinistry of DefenseUnited Kingdom,Armed Forces, Military
5April 8, 2022FinlandHelsinkiMinistryDDoS attackGovernment,Armed Forces, Military,Puolustusministeriö (Ministry of Defense),PuolustusministeriO (Ministry of Defense)
6April 19, 2022RussiaMilitary constructionConstruction,Armed Forces, Military,ГУОВ и ГС (GUOV i GS)
7April 22, 2022EstoniaTallinnMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE)
8April 29, 2022RomaniaBucharestMinistry of DefenseArmata României, Forțele Terestre Române, Forțele Aeriene Române, Forțele Navale Române, Armed Forces, Military,Government,Ministerul Apărării Naționale (MApN)
9May 2022GermanyBonnNWMinistry of DefenseDDoS attackNorth Rhine-Westphalia, BMVg, Bundeswehr, Heer, Luftwaffe, Marine, German Army, German Air Force, German Navy, Armed Forces, Military,Government
10May 2022CanadaMontreal QCQCAir combat trainingRansomwareQuébec, Armed Forces, Military,Aviation,Aerospace, Aviation, Defence, Defense,Top Aces Inc.
11May 11, 2022ItalyRomaMinistry of DefenseDDoS attackLazio, Forze armate italiane, FF.AA., Esercito Italiano, Aeronautica Militare, Marina Militare, Arma dei Carabinieri, Guardia di Finanza, Italia,Government,Armed Forces, Military,Ministero della Difesa
12May 16, 2022ChileJoint Chiefs of StaffArmed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Estado Mayor Conjunto
13May 18, 2022RussiaNizhny Tagil (Нижний Тагил)ArmsSverdlovsk Oblast, Armed Forces, Military,УралВагонЗавод (Uralvagonzavod)
14May 20, 2022ItalyRomaMinistry of DefenseLazio, Forze armate italiane, FF.AA., Esercito Italiano, Aeronautica Militare, Marina Militare, Arma dei Carabinieri, Guardia di Finanza, Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Government,Armed Forces, Military,Italia,Ministero della difesa
15May 26, 2022RussiaMilitary intelligence serviceGovernment,Armed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,GRU
16May 28, 2022RomaniaBucharestMinistry of DefenseArmata României, Forțele Terestre Române, Forțele Aeriene Române, Forțele Navale Române, Government,Armed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Ministerul Apărării Naționale - MApN
17June 8, 2022USAFort Worth TXTXDefenseTexas, Tarrant County and others, Armed Forces, Military,Elbit Systems of America, LLC
18June 17, 2022SlovakiaBratislavaMinistry of DefenseArmed Forces, Military,Government,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Ministerstvo obrany Slovenskej republiky
19July 3, 2022United KingdomLondonMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,United Kingdom,British Army
202022PakistanIslamabadMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Aviation,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Pakistan Air Force (PAF) / پاک فِضائیہ / Pāk Fìzāʾiyah
21August 2022TurkeySubmarine managementArmed Forces, Military,Boats, Martime, Ships,Müren,MUren
22August 4, 2022Republic of China / TaiwanTaipeiMinistry of DefenseGovernment,Armed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector
23August 2022PortugalMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Politics,NATO
24September 2022RussiaMercenary forceArmed Forces, Military,Wagner
25September 2022ColombiaBogotaMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Comando General de las Fuerzas Militares
26September 2022MexicoMinistry of DefenseGovernment,Armed Forces, Military,Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional in México (SEDENA)
27September 2022PeruLimaMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Comando Conjunto de las Fuerzas Armadas de Peru
28September 2022PeruLimaMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Ejército del Perú
29September 2022El SalvadorMilitaryArmed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Fuerza Armada de El Salvador
30October 2022AustraliaDefence ForcesArmed Forces, Military,Australian Defence Force / ForceNet
31December 1, 2022SwedenArmed ForcesArmed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Försvarsmakten,FOrsvarsmakten
32December 8, 2022DenmarkCopenhagenMinistry of DefenseGovernment,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector,Armed Forces, Military,Forsvarsministeriet
33December 10, 2022FranceParisVeteransArmed Forces, Military,Office national des anciens combattants et des victimes de guerre (ONACVG)
34December 16, 2022ItalyArmed ForcesItalia,Armed Forces, Military,Administration, Authority, Government, Public sector

Hacker attacks statistics

By month

Cyber attacks on the military and defense industry in 2022 by month
License Creative Commons BY 4.0. Credits: KonBriefing Research
 
Diagram in high resolution (License: Creative Commons BY 4.0):
 

By country

Cyber attacks on the military and defense industry in 2022 by country
License Creative Commons BY 4.0. Credits: KonBriefing Research
 
Diagram in high resolution (License: Creative Commons BY 4.0):
 

Number by country

Cyber attacks on the military and defense industry in 2022 by country
License Creative Commons BY 4.0. Credits: KonBriefing Research
 
Diagram in high resolution (License: Creative Commons BY 4.0):
 

Notes

  • The statistics are based on the known incidents listed here.
  • Since only some of the cases become known, the evaluations are not representative.
  • Industries where incidents are immediately visible due to public access (e.g. healthcare) are more represented than others.
  • An incident may be assigned to multiple countries or industries. Also, a country cannot always be assigned. So the totals shown on the charts may be different.
  • The graphics may be reused according to the license Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 / CC BY 4.0 (attribution: KonBriefing Research).
More statistics:
Cyberattacks, Hacker attacks, Ransomware attacks

Details, examples and sources

Flag RussiaApril 19, 2022
15,600 emails leaked from a Russian military construction company
ГУОВ и ГС (GUOV i GS) - Russia
https://twitter.com/NatSecGeek/status/15...
Flag GermanyMay 2022
DDoS attacks on the website of the German Federal Ministry of Defense
Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/int...
BMVg, Bundeswehr, Heer, Luftwaffe, Marine, German Army, German Air Force, German Navy
Flag RussiaMay 18, 2022
Cyberattacks on the website of a Russian arms company
УралВагонЗавод (Uralvagonzavod) - Nizhny Tagil (Нижний Тагил), Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia
https://twitter.com/cyber_etc/status/152...
Flag USAJune 8, 2022
Unauthorized access at the U.S. subsidiary of an Israeli defense contractor
Elbit Systems of America, LLC - Fort Worth, Texas, USA (Tarrant County and others)
https://apps.web.maine.gov/online/aeview...
Flag SwedenDecember 1, 2022
DDoS attack on the website of the Swedish Armed Forces
Försvarsmakten - Sweden
The website was inaccessible for 10 minutes.
https://www.forsvarsmakten.se/sv/aktuell...
The affected organization informed the public about the incident.

Overviews

How many companies and organizations were affected by cyberattacks?

KonBriefing Research had counted 34 successful cyberattacks on companies and organizations for the period.

When did cyber attacks take place?

For the year 2022, KonBriefing Research counted the following successful cyberattacks on companies and organizations: January (1)  •  February (1)  •  March (2)  •  April (4)  •  May (8)  •  June (2)  •  July (2)  •  August (3)  •  September (6)  •  October (1)  •  December (4)

Which industries were affected by cyberattacks?

For 2022, KonBriefing Research found successful cyberattacks on companies and organizations of the following industries: Military (34)  •  Public sector (14)  •  Government (11)  •  Aviation (2)  •  Technology (1)  •  Politics (1)  •  Maritime (1)  •  Intelligent service (1)  •  Construction (1)  •  Aerospace & Defense (1) (Multiple assignments possible).

About KonBriefing Research

KonBriefing Research is an independent researcher and analyst in the field of IT security, information security, risk management and compliance. The company was founded in 2019 and is based in Germany.

About the author

Bert Kondruss
Author:
Bert Kondruss
Founder and managing director of KonBriefing Research

Cyber attacks worldwide

Cyber attacks worldwide
(Click the image to open)