International hacking collective Anonymous has hacked Swiss food and drink giant Nestlé and told other companies still operating in Russia to pull out, Security Affairs reported on 22 March.
As well as hacking Nestlé, the collective leaked 10GB of sensitive data, including company emails, passwords, and data related to business customers, in protest that the conglomerate was continuing to operate in Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, the report said.
In a statement on 23 March, Nestlé said its activities in Russia would focus on providing essential food, such as baby food and medical nutrition – not on making a profit.
“This approach is in line with our purpose and values. It upholds the principle of ensuring the basic right to food,” the statement said.
The company said it was suspending Nestlé brands such as KitKat and Nesquik and halting non-essential imports and exports into and out of Russia, stopping all advertising, and suspending all capital investment in the country.
“While we do not expect to make a profit in the country or pay any related taxes for the foreseeable future in Russia, any profit will be donated to humanitarian relief organisations,” the company said.
“This is in addition to the hundreds of tonnes of food supplies and significant financial assistance that we have already contributed to support the people in Ukraine and refugees in neighbouring countries. And these efforts will continue. We stand with the people of Ukraine and our 5,800 employees there.”
Nestlé said it was fully compliant with all international sanctions on Russia.
Anonymous also announced other attacks and threatened action against 40 international companies that were still operating in Russia despite the invasion of Ukraine, Security Affairs wrote.
The collective also claimed to have carried out multiple cyberattacks on Russian state media organisations and state-controlled websites, according to a Daily Mail report on 22 March.
In earlier attacks, the group had leaked thousands of sensitive Kremlin documents relating to the war in Ukraine, the report said.
Anonymous is a decentralised international activist and hacktivist collective and movement primarily known for cyberattacks against several governments and government institutions and agencies.
