UK Sanctions Russian Institute For Alleged Cyber Attack On Saudi Oil Plant

Moscow, March 25: The United Kingdom has imposed sanctions on the Russian Central Scientific Research Institute of Chemistry and Mechanics (TsNIIKhM) for an alleged cyber attack on a Saudi petro-chemical plant in 2017, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said in a statement on Friday.

The ministry added that “the malware used against the petro-chemical plant was designed specifically to target the plant’s safety override for the Industrial Control System and resulted in two emergency shutdowns of the plant” and “to give the actors complete control of infected systems and had the capability to cause significant impact, possibly including the release of toxic gas or an explosion – either of which could have resulted in loss of life and physical damage to the facility.” UNI/SPUTNIK