Warsaw (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – A Russian citizen suspected of hacking IT systems of Polish firms was apprehended in Krakow, Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski said on Thursday.
How are recent sabotage attempts linked to Russian operations?What Polish critical infrastructure was allegedly surveilled for sabotage?
“Police officers in Krakow have detained a Russian citizen suspected of serious crimes related to unauthorized interference in the IT systems of Polish companies,”
Kierwinski noted on X.
“He breached their security to gain access to databases. He was temporarily arrested,”
he said.
He did not identify what the databases were employed for.
Funkcjonariusze @PolicjaCBZC w Krakowie zatrzymali obywatela Rosji podejrzewanego o poważne przestępstwa związane z nieuprawnioną ingerencją w systemy teleinformatyczne polskich firm. Przełamywał ich zabezpieczenia, by zdobyć dostęp do baz danych. Zastosowano areszt tymczasowy.
— Marcin Kierwiński (@MKierwinski) November 27, 2025
How are recent sabotage attempts linked to Russian operations?
Following a wave of arson, sabotage, and cyberattacks since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Poland and other European countries have increased their surveillance for hostile actions from Russia.
They claimed to have encountered tactics like arson and cyberattacks as part of a “hybrid war” waged by Russia to destabilise nations supporting Ukraine. Russia has repeatedly denied any such actions and blames Warsaw for “Russophobia.”
How did earlier arrests expose broader sabotage networks in Poland?
A similar arrest occurred a month ago, when Polish security authorities detained eight individuals suspected of plotting acts of sabotage in different regions, according to PM Donald Tusk. “Further operational activities are continuing,” he stated, but did not provide additional details.
The Polish minister responsible for special services, Tomasz Siemoniak, stated,
“The matters … concern reconnaissance of military facilities and critical infrastructure elements, the preparation of means to carry out acts of sabotage, and the direct execution of attacks.”
What Polish critical infrastructure was allegedly surveilled for sabotage?
Worries over Russia’s hybrid warfare are severe in Poland. Warsaw’s government has documented several sabotage attempts, declaring they were directed by Russia, such as a fire at a shopping mall in the Polish capital and several cybersecurity breaches.
A major shopping centre in Warsaw was destroyed by fire in May 2024, along with the 1,400 businesses that were housed there, the majority of which were owned by Vietnamese people. Authorities opened an inquiry at that time and blamed Moscow.
Poland claimed that Russian and Belarusian intelligence services had targeted it because of its importance as a hub for assistance to Ukraine, accusing Moscow and Minsk of planning sabotage operations like arson on Polish territory.
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