Russian EV charging stations hacked with ‘Putin is a d***head’ message
Equipment was built by Ukrainian company that kept a backdoor into it, Russian owners say
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Electric vehicle charging stations on a Russian motorway were hacked by a Ukrainian company that helped build them with a message reading “Putin is a d***head”.
The chargers along the M11 motorway, which runs between Moscow and St Petersburg, were disabled and started to display pro-Ukrainian messages, according to social media users.
“Glory to Ukraine / Glory to the heroes / Putin is a d***head / Death to the enemy,” the message reportedly read.
The phrase about the Russian leader became a popular slogan in Ukraine following the 2014 Russian invasion, according to Motherboard.
Russian energy company Rosseti stated that the chargers were bought through a Russian company, which had outsourced production to Ukrainian company AutoEnterprise, based in Kharkiv.
Ukraine drops visa requirement for foreign fighters after US veterans complain of red tape
Ukraine invasion: How our personal money links us to the rest of the world
Ukraine-Russia news – live: Putin’s forces hit Kyiv TV tower as Moscow vows retaliation over UN expulsions
Sign The Independent’s petition to help the people of Ukraine following the Russian invasion
“Charging stations installed on the M-11 route were purchased in 2020 according to the results of an open purchase procedure. The provider was given by the LLC “Gzhelprom” (Russia). It was later discovered that the main components (incl. A. the controller) are actually produced by the company Autoenterprise (Ukraine), and the Russian supplier produced a open assembly,” Rosseti said on Facebook.
“The manufacturer left a ‘marketing’ in the controller, which gave him the opportunity to have hidden internet access. According to our information, data controllers are widely used on power charging stations exported by Ukraine to Europe.”
AutoEnterprise re-posted video of the hacked chargers on its own Facebook page.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments