Hackers Claim They've Seized Control of Russian Spy Satellites

Anonymous is claiming that Russia has "no more control over their own spy satellites."

Satellite Location

Dmitry Rogozin, Russia's outspoken head of its space agency, denied recent reports that hackers had already seized control of the nation's satellites.

A group affiliated with the hacker group Anonymous tweeted on Tuesday that it had "shut down the control center" of Roscomos, which meant the country had "no more control over their own spy satellites."

According to Rogozin, though, that's total nonsense.

"The information of these scammers and petty swindlers is not true," he said, as quoted by Russian news service Interfax. "All our space activity control centers are operating normally."

Proxy War

But as he is wont to do, Rogozin took the opportunity to threaten Russia's adversaries.

"Offlining the satellites of any country is actually a casus belli, a cause for war," he added, according to Reuters.

The alleged hack comes as chaos grips Ukraine, with Russian forces are leaving cities in ruins using powerful explosives.

That kind of aggression isn't sitting well with the international space community. Both NASA and the European Space Agency have actively distanced themselves from Russia's space efforts, and Rogozin in particular has a way of painting a target on his own back.

Adding to the drama, Rogozin waded into the controversy around satellite company OneWeb, which is still planning to launch 36 of its satellites, part of a greater effort to build out a satellite-based internet network, from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which is run by Roscosmos.

But Rogozin says he wants a guarantee that the satellites won't be used against Russia, and says he's ready to pull the plug on the mission if OneWeb fails to provide that guarantee.

READ MORE: Russia space agency head says satellite hacking would justify war -report [Reuters]

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