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Cyber Partisans: Struggle Will Continue Till Regime Is Fully Destroyed

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Cyber Partisans: Struggle Will Continue Till Regime Is Fully Destroyed

This is how patriotic-minded hackers fight Lukashenka's junta and help Ukraine.

A group of hacker-activists (or hacktivists) called "Cyber Partisans" appeared in Belarus in the autumn of 2020 in response to election fraud in Belarus, violence by the security forces, and mass repression. A team of anonymous IT pros became famous for hacking the system with passport data, "leaking" the records of conversations of security officers and officials, and recently — cyber attacks on the Belarusian Railways system.

Yuliana Shemiatovets is the only representative of the Cyber Partisans, who is known to the public. In an interview with Deutsche Welle, she spoke about the work of hacktivists.

"Yuliana, how many hacktivists are now in the Cyber Partisans?"

"Since the beginning of the war (in Ukraine — edit.), a lot of new people have come, many at the moment want to join the ranks of the Cyber Partisans. The last time I asked, there were about 60 of us. But not all of these people participate in attacks and have access to certain databases. Before the war, there were about 30 people in the team."

"I would like to picture an image of these people …"

"Me too." (laughs)

"Do I get it right that you do not know anyone, and have not met any of them?"

"No, I haven't met anyone. I don't even know who is there. Of course, there is always a small chance that there is someone I know or have heard about from people I know. Still, I don't know their names or where they are. My communication with the Cyber Partisans and their communication with each other takes place anonymously. I can only say that these are guys with a good sense of humor and a rational approach, they believe in democracy, and do their best to build a democratic system in Belarus.

Attacks on Belarusian Railways

"What recent actions of the Cyber Partisans do you consider the most successful?"

"The most successful was the railway action. A war is raging in Ukraine now, people are dying. Therefore, it was very important to help the Ukrainians, and stop the movement of Russian trains. Attacks on railways were discussed by the Cyber Partisans back in 2021, and they tried to penetrate the system in autumn. The first attack took place in December. It was non-public, it was important for the Cyber Partisans to understand what the reaction of the railway employees would be.

After the entry of Russian troops into the territory of Belarus in January, a second attack took place. It was public. Here it was important to show that Belarusians were against the possible occupation of the territory of Belarus, and the presence of Russian troops on it. When the war began, the third and fourth attacks took place, which completely "cut down" the automation system for two days."

"What were the consequences of this?"

"The automation system is responsible for switching traffic lights and the movement of arrows. When a train pulls into a certain area, the driver looks at the traffic lights or arrows to figure out where to go. This system stopped working, which, of course, was very dangerous. That is, people had to manually perform many processes that have been automated for the last 20 years. At the same time, Belarusian Railways lack specialists.

Of course, the "partisans'' on the ground also helped a lot. While the Cyber Partisans were attacking the system, they were carrying out attacks on the relay cabinets. The combination of these factors has shown the Russian regime that it is dangerous to use Belarusian Railways. They (the Russian authorities — edit.) tried to use commercial trains because they knew that the Cyber Partisans would not attack them. We have red lines, our own ethics. And the most important rule is not to influence the lives of ordinary citizens.

Collaboration with Ukrainian hacktivists and the Kalinouski battalion

"Do the Cyber Partisans cooperate with someone else, or act independently?"

"Basically, they act independently, but since the beginning of the war, they actively communicate with Ukrainian hacktivists, provide them with information and certain access, give advice, because they have already gained experience, talk about mistakes and opportunities."

"Do you cooperate with official Ukrainian structures?"

"The Cyber Partisans provide them with information that may be important. They do it either directly or through the battalion of Kastus Kalinouski. This may be, for example, data on the location of Russian or Belarusian troops."

"And what connects Cyber Partisans with the Kalinouski battalion?"

"They are actively helping the battalion of Kastus Kalinouski. First of all, it is a test of people. If a person wants to join a battalion, he first fills out a certain form, and this data is then checked by the Cyber Partisans. In this way, four agents of the special services were eliminated, who tried to sneak into the Kastus Kalinouski battalion."

"How do you protect your informants?"

"The most important thing that we always say is that no one will protect you better than yourself. The Cyber Partisans usually publish safety instructions, for example, how to create a fake Telegram account, which VPN is better to install, and how to use the "partisan" Telegram, which was developed by the Cyber Partisans. With its help, you can set a special code, upon entering which, for example, chats are deleted, or you get unsubscribed from certain channels.

But this does not mean that the Cyber Partisans can create a magical Internet or a site where everything will be safe. Everyone should take responsibility, we provide all the necessary information, and are always ready to help if something is not clear."

Price of freedom

"To what extent is the long-term plan of struggle spelled out in your manifesto?"

"The struggle will continue until the regime is completely destroyed in Belarus, and lustration is carried out."

"Probably, this will require quite a lot of information."

"Yes, but at the same time it is important to know that it is impossible and unnecessary to lustrate everyone. A lot of people just followed the orders. And those who gave the orders will be brought to justice."

"You are the only one among the Cyber Partisans who openly represents the hacktivists. But your family, people close to you, for sure, are still in Belarus. Are you afraid for yourself and for them?"

"I would like not to answer this question. Yes, of course it's scary. But I do not communicate with anyone on this topic, so as not to put anyone at risk. Perhaps this is the price of freedom."

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