Russia-Linked Disinformation, Cyberattacks Target Moldova Vote

Moldovans are voting in a pivotal Sept. 28 parliamentary election framed as a choice between EU integration and drifting back toward Moscow, with the ruling pro‑Western PAS running in alliance with the Unionist Electoral Bloc BUN after BUN withdrew to support PAS. The pro‑Western bloc is at risk of losing its parliamentary majority to several Russia‑friendly opponents, raising the stakes for Moldova’s EU ambitions. President Maia Sandu and Prime Minister Dorin Recean say Russia is waging an alleged “hybrid war,” spending “hundreds of millions” to sway the vote through vote‑buying, cyberattacks, plans to incite unrest and disinformation. Days before the ballot Moldova’s electoral commission suffered a DDoS attack that authorities said used compromised Wi‑Fi routers and has been mitigated, and officials have carried out raids and other countermeasures. Cybersecurity researchers have traced coordinated, state‑linked networks (tracked as Storm‑1679/Matryoshka and tied to the Roskomnadzor‑registered Absatz infrastructure) that publish biased sites and false headlines to influence the election, and turnout plus the effectiveness of defenses will likely determine whether Moldova stays its westward course.