FSB claims foreign spyware planted on Russian officials' phones

Russia's FSB says it uncovered a large-scale covert operation by foreign intelligence agencies to install spyware on the phones of senior Russian government officials. The security service alleged the software was used to monitor private conversations, but did not name the alleged perpetrators or the targeted officials.

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has claimed to have discovered a major covert operation allegedly carried out by foreign intelligence services targeting senior Russian government officials. According to the FSB, the operation involved installing malicious spyware on the smartphones of high-ranking officials to monitor and intercept their private conversations.

The FSB described the incident as a "large-scale operation" but did not specify which foreign agencies were allegedly responsible, nor did it identify which officials had been targeted or when the spyware was discovered. The Russian security service also did not provide technical details about the nature of the malicious software or how it was supposedly deployed onto the devices.

The announcement comes amid heightened tensions between Russia and Western nations over the ongoing war in Ukraine, with both sides repeatedly accusing each other of espionage and cyberattacks. Russian authorities have previously made similar claims about foreign surveillance operations, though independent verification of such allegations has often proven difficult or impossible.

Western intelligence agencies have not commented on the FSB's allegations. Russia itself has been widely accused by Western governments and cybersecurity firms of conducting extensive digital espionage operations against foreign governments, critical infrastructure, and private institutions across Europe and North America.