US extradites member of Russian hacktivist group involved in critical infrastructure attacks

A 33-year-old Ukrainian national was extradited to the U.S. after being indicted on hacking charges related to her involvement in Russian groups that have claimed credit for hundreds of attacks on critical infrastructure.

The Justice Department unveiled two indictments on Tuesday evening charging Victoria Eduardovna Dubranova for her role in CyberArmyofRussia_Reborn (CARR) and NoName057(16) — two prominent Russian hacktivist groups known for launching distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. The groups, according to court documents, are backed by the Russian government financially and operationally. 

Prosecutors said in addition to DDoS attacks, the groups have also been involved in cyberattacks and intrusions “in support of Russia’s geopolitical interests.”

EPA Acting Assistant Administrator Craig Pritzlaff said Dubranova was allegedly involved in tampering with public water systems that “put communities and the nation’s drinking water resources at risk.”

FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Brett Leatherman declined to say when Dubranova was extradited or how she was arrested but the Justice Department said in a statement that she was sent to the U.S. earlier this year. 

Dubranova pleaded not guilty in both cases and her trial for NoName057(16) is scheduled for February 3 while the trial for CARR is set for April 7. 

Both groups use the Russian government support to purchase subscriptions to DDoS services and other cybercrime tools. 

The indictment backs previous reporting from Recorded Future News that found NoName057(16) was a state-sanctioned effort bolstered by an October 2018 order from Russian President Vladimir Putin creating the group’s proprietary DDoS program.

For CARR, Dubranova is facing one count of conspiracy to damage protected computers and tamper with public water systems, one count of damaging protected computers, one count of access device fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. She faces a maximum sentence of 27 years if convicted. 

With the NoName057(16) indictment, Dubranova was charged with one count of conspiracy to damage protected computers and is facing a maximum penalty of five years in prison. 

“Politically motivated hacktivist groups, whether state-sponsored like CARR or state-sanctioned like NoName, pose a serious threat to our national security, particularly when foreign intelligence services use civilians to obfuscate their malicious cyber activity targeting American critical infrastructure as well as attacking proponents of NATO and U.S. interests abroad,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. 

The Treasury Department previously sanctioned two leading CARR members, Yuliya Vladimirovna Pankratova and Denis Olegovich Degtyarenko, in July 2024.