The German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) and the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) have issued a warning that a wave of cyberattacks-likely orchestrated by state actors-is targeting high‑profile individuals. The alert came in a letter sent to members of the Bundestag, which the magazine “Spiegel” reported on. According to the letter, the attackers focus on senior figures in politics, the military, diplomacy, and investigative journalists across Germany and Europe.
The hackers’ approach is to intercept messages on the Signal messaging app. Signal is widely used by journalists and politicians because it is perceived as highly secure; its chats and calls are end‑to‑end encrypted. Both BfV and BSI claim that attackers have discovered ways to gain access to victims’ Signal accounts through phishing techniques.
The authorities describe this campaign as “particularly security‑relevant when it concerns high‑ranking targets”. A successful intrusion into a Messenger account not only provides access to confidential personal communications but could also compromise entire networks via group chats. The information gathered could be employed for further intelligence or criminal activities.