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Pro-Russian, anti-Israeli hackers pose biggest cybercrime threats in Germany
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on June 3, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on June 3, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Germany faces record cybercrime levels due to pro-Russian and anti-Israeli hackers. The government plans stronger countermeasures.
BERLIN (Reuters) -Cybercrime in Germany rose to a record level last year, driven by hacker attacks from pro-Russian and anti-Israeli groups, the BKA Federal Crime Office reported on Tuesday as the government said it would boost countermeasures to combat it.
"Cybercrime is an increasing threat to our security," said Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt. "It is getting more aggressive but our counter-strategies are also becoming more professional," he said.
Some 131,391 cases of cybercrime took place in Germany last year and a further 201,877 cases were committed from abroad or an unknown location, a BKA report said.
The actors behind the hacker attacks on German targets were primarily either pro-Russian or anti-Israeli, said the BKA, adding targets were mostly public and federal institutions.
Ransomware, when criminals copy and encrypt data, is one of the main threats, said the BKA, with 950 companies and institutes reporting cases in 2024.
German digital association Bitkom said damage caused by cyberattacks here totalled 178.6 billion euros ($203.87 billion) last year, some 30.4 billion euros more than in the previous year.
Dobrindt said the government planned to extend the legal capabilities authorities could use to combat cybercrime and set higher security standards for companies.
($1 = 0.8760 euros)
(Reporting by Madeline Chambers, Editing by Friederike Heine)
Cybercrime in Germany reached a record level last year, with 131,391 cases reported domestically and an additional 201,877 cases from abroad or unknown locations.
The primary actors behind the hacker attacks on German targets are pro-Russian and anti-Israeli groups, targeting mostly public and federal institutions.
Cyberattacks caused damage totaling 178.6 billion euros ($203.87 billion) in Germany last year, which is an increase of 30.4 billion euros from the previous year.
The German government plans to extend legal capabilities for authorities to combat cybercrime and set higher security standards for companies.
Ransomware is a significant threat where criminals encrypt data for ransom. In 2024, 950 companies and institutes reported ransomware cases.
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