The head of Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos, has warned hackers that their actions could be construed as a “casus belli, i.e., an event that justifies a war.”
Dmitry Rogozin’s remark came shortly after Russia’s RKA Mission Control Center was hacked. According to Russian media, the official told a news channel on Wednesday that “those who are attempting to do this” should be aware that “it is a crime that calls for a very severe punishment.”
Rogozin went on to say that the disruption of “any country’s space forces is a so-called casus belli,” a Latin term for an event that either leads to or justifies the start of a war.
The Roscosmos CEO also threatened the perpetrators, stating that his company would identify them and turn over the data to Russian security services, who would then launch a criminal investigation against the hackers.
Earlier this week, several Telegram groups claimed that the NB65 hacker group, which is allegedly linked to Anonymous, had successfully breached Roscosmos’ communications with Russia’s satellites, according to Russian media.
Rogozin, on the other hand, dismissed the claims, claiming that while there were attempts to breach the system, Roscosmos’ defence was able to repel them.
