Russian Cybersecurity Expert's Arrest Sparks International Tensions | June 28, 2023
Channel: Hacking Space Frontier
Date: 2023-06-28

Last week, a prominent Russian cybersecurity expert named Nikita Kislitsin was detained in Kazakhstan at the request of the United States. This led to Moscow seeking his extradition as well. The reason behind his arrest is unclear, but Kislitsin has been charged with selling usernames and passwords belonging to American customers of the social media company Formspring back in 2012.

Kislitsin was working as the head of network security at Group-IB, a cybersecurity company, and its Russia-based spinoff called F.A.C.C.T. It's important to note that Group-IB stated that his arrest is unrelated to his work at the company. F.A.C.C.T. mentioned that the charges against Kislitsin are related to his time as a journalist and independent researcher, but did not provide further details. Kislitsin previously served as the editor-in-chief of the Russian magazine "Hacker," which focuses on information security and cyberattacks.

On a separate note, a Moscow court issued an arrest warrant for Kislitsin in connection with unauthorized access to protected computer information. Russia also expressed its intention to seek his extradition from Kazakhstan. It is worth mentioning that Russia has previously employed tactics to prevent the extradition of wanted hackers to the United States.

According to Dmitry Smilyanets, the director of product management at Recorded Future, hackers often choose to flee to former Soviet countries like Armenia, Georgia, and Kazakhstan, believing they will be safe from foreign prosecution there.

Kislitsin has frequently traveled abroad in recent years, including to Kazakhstan, for both business and personal reasons. His company, F.A.С.С.T., stated that he faced no problems while crossing the border and believes that there are no legal grounds for his detention in Kazakhstan. They expressed their support for Kislitsin and his family.