Russia's FSB: Scientist Sent Crypto, Helped Launch DDoS Attacks

Russia's FSB, the nation's Federal Security Service, has charged a Moscow-based scientist with 'treason' for allegedly sending cryptoassets to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

In an official FSB release and a report from Vedomosti, the agency explained that its agents have detained 'an employee of a scientific organization in Moscow.'

Officers claimed that the unnamed scientist 'regularly transferred his personal funds and cryptocurrency' to wallets operated by the Ukrainian army.

Agents claimed that the man 'participated in DDoS attacks on a critical Russian structure.' DDoS (Distributed Denial-of-Service) involves attackers flooding servers with traffic, which often crashes sites or prevents web users from accessing them.

The FSB did not provide details about the amount of crypto the scientist allegedly sent or which coins he used. Furthermore, the agency withheld the names of the scientific institutions where the man reportedly worked. It also refused to name the 'critical Russian structure,' which it says suffered the DDoS attack.

'The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation has opened a criminal case against an employee of a scientific organization on the grounds of a crime under [...] the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.'

The crime in question is classified by Russian law as 'high treason,' media outlets reported on August 22. Officers said the suspect 'established contact with Ukraine's special services representatives.'

The FSB claimed that on Ukrainian agents' 'instructions,' he 'carried out DDoS attacks on critically important Russian facilities.' The agency said that the man's goals involved 'damaging the information security of the Russian Federation.'

Alleged Goals and Activities

The FSB said the man also 'collected information about Russian military personnel and the movement of military equipment.'

Officers claimed the man's crypto donations were used 'in Ukraine to purchase weapons and military equipment for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.'

The FSB said that the man had provided officers with a 'confession.' They concluded they had remanded the scientist 'in custody as a preventive measure.'

Since the outbreak of the war with Ukraine, the FSB has charged several individuals with treason over alleged support for Kyiv.

In 2023, the FSB charged an individual from the far eastern region of Khabarovsk Krai with crypto-related offenses. And Russia's Sberbank last year claimed that over $5 million worth of crypto had been sent from Russian-based wallets to recipients in Ukraine since the start of the conflict.

A Ukrainian crypto industry insider who asked to remain anonymous told Cryptonews.com that crypto use is 'very much on the rise' in Russia and Ukraine.