Santa Barbara Systems, a subsidiary of General Dynamics in Spain involved in refurbishing Leopard tanks for delivery to Ukraine, faced a cyberattack on its website, as confirmed by a spokesperson. The pro-Russia hacker group, NoName, claimed responsibility for the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack via the Telegram messaging service. This attack, aimed at knocking targeted servers offline, underscores the ongoing tensions between Russia and countries supporting Ukraine.
A spokesperson for General Dynamics assured that the attempted cyberattack was immediately detected and did not compromise any of the company’s systems. As a precautionary measure, the company decided to temporarily disconnect its website until the completion of an ongoing investigation. Despite the disruption, the spokesperson emphasized that the company’s sensitive data remains well-protected.
Notably, Spain’s National Cybersecurity Institute had recently warned Santa Barbara Systems about the possibility of such attacks. This incident comes at a time when Spain pledged significant military support for Ukraine, including the delivery of Leopard 2A4 tanks. While General Dynamics operations in Europe, including those in Germany, continue to run normally, the cyberattack highlights the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to cyber threats amidst geopolitical tensions.
