Alleged contacts with intelligence in Moscow – Corriere.it

from our reporter
Berlin- The head of German cybersecurity is under investigation and can be removed due to his unclear connection to Russian intelligence. surely Arne schoenbum
He no longer has the confidence of the Minister of the Interior, Nancy Visserwhich yesterday blatantly canceled the traditional joint presentation of the annual report of the Federal Office of Cyber ​​Security, which is headed by Schönbaum.

Under fire is the so-called German Cyber ​​Security Council, an association founded by the same official ten years ago and more recently the subject of Strong criticism of its close cooperation with the intelligence services in Moscow. According to a program broadcast on Zdf, the second public network, Schönbohm, even if it is no longer at the helm, will still be in constant contact with the organization that brings together experts and public and private companies. In particular, in August, the head of German cybersecurity Jubilee attended the assembly, where he gave the keynote speech. There is a strong indication of the ambiguous relationship between the Cyber ​​Security Council and MoscowUntil recently, among its partners was Protelion, a German sister company of the Russian group OAO Infotecs, which is specialized in this sector. It was founded by a former KGB agent, KGB. According to Zdf, the founder was awarded by Vladimir Putin in honor of his merits.

Yesterday the association announced in a collision that it had removed Protelion from its members, due to conduct contrary to the objectives of the council. But she rejected the accusation that she was influenced by the Russians, because “the suspicions belong to one of our personnel”, who entered only in 2020 and “did not have any conversations or joint projects with him.” According to various media, the government is ready to remove ShunbumAppointment of another head of cybersecurity: “The accusations – reading a written statement from the Ministry of the Interior – are taken seriously and all options are evaluated.”

Concern that critical infrastructure in Germany will come targeted by the RussiansBecause of Berlin’s support for Ukraine, it is increasing. Especially after an apparent act of sabotage last weekend paralyzed the entire railway traffic in the northwestern regions of the country, from Lower Saxony to Schleswig-Holstein for more than three hours. in the beginning Deutsche Bahn He said it was a flaw in the train’s digital radio system, but the government later admitted there was a malicious cause: According to Transport Minister Volker Wessing, two cables separated by 500 kilometers were cut. An internal document of the Federal Prosecutor’s Office will not rule out the role of the state in the act of sabotage. While the head of the Bundestag European Affairs Commission, Green Anton Hofriter, explicitly indicated the possible involvement of Russia.