Cyber Shadows: Russian Hackers Target Polish Elections

In a dramatic escalation just two days before Poland's presidential election, a group of Russian hackers has reportedly targeted key political websites, according to Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The attack, which is said to have been orchestrated via the messaging app Telegram, compromised the platforms of the ruling Civic Platform party alongside those of other political entities.

Tusk took to social media platform X to alert the public about the cyber offensive. He assured that security services were vigorously investigating the matter. The attack adds tension in Poland, which like other European nations, is vigilantly watching for signs of election interference following a recently thwarted presidential vote in Romania, where similar concerns of Russian meddling were raised.

Jan Grabiec, head of Tusk's chancellery, was the first to reveal the breach, though he refrained from direct accusations. The cyber storm emerges amid a backdrop of complex political dynamics as Warsaw's Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski battles against local historian Karol Nawrocki and nationalist Slawomir Mentzen. Notably, Civic Platform's systems had previously been targeted in April.

(With inputs from agencies.)