no more plums
Over the weekend, archives surfaced on a closed Telegram channel claiming to publish leaked databases containing personal information about 600 FSB officers and 65 employees of the Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet. The source of the leak is listed as an information security firm called T. Hunter.
The first archive reportedly includes full names, birth dates and places, passport data, registration and workplace addresses, phone numbers, and more. The second archive contains full names, ranks, assignments, birthplaces, registration addresses, phone numbers, and other passport data.
A journalist from socialbites.ca obtained entry number six from the database. None of the respondents confirmed or denied involvement with the FSB or the Navy. Some gave names that appeared in the database and answered questions indirectly or hung up when asked about public service ties.
Gazeta.ru reported that at the end of March, a database with information about FSB officers was allegedly published by Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate. There is no evidence of earlier publications showing such a table about the Russian Navy personnel.
Said Tabaev, a cybercrime investigator with T. Hunter, told socialbites.ca that the claim could not be verified without confirmation from the FSB and the Russian Ministry of Defense. He noted questions about the reliability of the data in the databases and did not dismiss the possibility of a leak existing, though it remains unconfirmed.
Since early 2022, there have been multiple leaks on darknet forums and Telegram channels containing information about police, the FSB, and the military. These leaks vary in sophistication and often involve unauthorized access to cloud databases, sometimes attributed to insiders. Such archives frequently appear on the darknet and Telegram channels as a result.
Experts say that fresh, up-to-date databases can sometimes include information from previous breaches. Kaspersky Lab did not validate the databases discussed but agreed with T. Hunter that many so-called leaks are based on older data or misinformation, including reports of government agency breaches that later proved false. Kaspersky noted that for leaks tied to government agencies, a large portion of the material is fake, with real-minded data being rarer but possible.
At the time of publication, neither the FSB nor the Russian Ministry of Defense had responded to inquiries from socialbites.ca.
Open Threat
Irina Zinovkina, consulting director at InfoWatch Group, argues that breaches involving military and intelligence personnel pose a national security risk that surpasses typical corporate data leaks. Said Tabaev shares a similar view, describing all law enforcement personnel as confidential carriers who have access to information that can amount to state secrets.
Dissemination of personal military data could lead to exposure and unauthorized access to secrets, making the protection of such individuals a state priority, according to Tabaev.
Fedor Muzalevsky, director of the RTM Group technical department, agrees that leaks from the military and law enforcement can reveal sensitive details about decision makers and their movements, heightening the risk to national security.
Ilya Tikhonov, head of Compliance and Audit in Softline’s information security division, adds that data exposure could enable social engineering and manipulation of the military and supporting agencies through targeted information.
risky business
Muzalevsky emphasized that the publication and spread of personal data about intelligence officials and the military extend beyond individual impact and carry consequences for the state. He notes that publishing or reposting leaked material about officers could expose the writer to criminal liability and treason charges.
Tikhonov echoed the concern, pointing to statutory penalties for the unlawful handling and disclosure of information tied to security measures, commercial or banking secrets, and other protected data. He referenced specific provisions that could carry prison terms of up to five years for improper disclosure.
Meanwhile, T. Hunter’s Said Tabaev indicated that his team has traced the Telegram channel administrators responsible for posting data about FSB officers and Navy personnel. He stated that the data was handed over to law enforcement authorities for investigation.