Activist group Ukrainian Cyber Alliance has confirmed to the Kyiv Post that it was behind the April 7 hack of the Facebook page of Russian writer and propagandist Alexander Prokhanov.
Sean Townsend, a spokesperson for the group, told the Kyiv Post on April 9 that he had authored a post on Prokhanov’s page which caused widespread surprise and frustration among followers of the writer.
“My friend helped me to stick to Prokhanov’s style and create the text,” he said.
Ukrainian Cyber Alliance launched the attack on Prokhanov’s page after he suggested Russia should respond to the April 6 U.S. airstrikes on an airbase in Syria by attacking Ukrainian army bases in the war-torn Donbas with cruise missiles.
The controversial comments came during an appearance by the writer on a political talk show on Russia’s state-backed First Channel on April 7.
“It would be good if they (the U.S.) lost some of their warplanes or if Russia strikes its enemies in the Donbas with Grad missiles” he said, before being quickly interrupted by another participant of the show, who changed the subject of the conversation.
Russian writer Alexander Prokhanov poses for a photo (courtesy from Prokhanov Facebook)
Later that same day the writer’s Facebook page was hacked by Ukrainian Cyber Alliance. The group made several posts under Prokhanov’s name, including the one written by Townsend which made reference to Voronezh, a city in southwestern Russia.
“We should respond to (Donald) Trump’s stab in the back with an unexpected and crucial move,” the post read. “A venomous snake has made its nest near the borders of our great, birch motherland. For the sake of peace we will destroy Voronezh.”
The message immediately provoked a response with Russian users arguing over whether Prokhanov’s page was hacked.
“I can’t believe this was written by Prokhanov. His emotions and picturesque style can’t be compared with this savagery,” wrote user Igor Spyrydonov.
Townsend told the Kyiv Post he “laughed a lot” when he saw the frustration among Russian followers of Prokhanov that his post had provoked.
After the wave of criticism and discussion generated by the posts on his page, Prokhanov was quick to report to Russian news outlet Lenta.ru that he had been the victim of hackers.
“That post was written in my literary style – there were a lot of metaphors and imagery – but it definitely wasn’t written by me,” he said.
Prokhanov, known in Russia for his propaganda literature praising Russia’s “greatness”, reported that he found out about his profile being hacked on the evening of April 7 and said he told Facebook’s administrators but did not receive a response. The writer claimed not to know who had hacked him or why.
