The Russian intelligence service FSB is buying sensitive information about the Ukrainian military for less money, reports The Times and refers to information from the Ukrainian security service.
The spies are recruited remotely on the social media service Telegram and the information is bought from civilians.
An example of a recruitment is a 21-year-old woman in Odessa who was sentenced to eight years in prison for selling information to the Kremlin. She received roughly SEK 530 per piece of information and has admitted that she shared the sensitive information with spies from Russia over 20 times between July and August 2023.
Receive private message
It was via the Telegram channel “Typically Odessa” that it all happened. The group consists of around 200,000 members and there are tips on restaurants, different types of local views and views from the city.
In these various tips, there are Swiss spies, employed by the FSB, and they target people who like and comment on the posts on the channel.
An anonymous source from Ukraine’s security service SBU told The Times:
“They see who repeatedly likes and comments on their posts.”
Once the people are identified, a private message arrives from Russian intelligence services offering a payment for providing information.
Coordinates on Google maps
The tasks may include photographing and making observations of the Ukrainian military, the newspaper writes. It could also be sharing sensitive information about rail traffic, air defense systems and military aircraft where everything must be marked with coordinates on Google maps.
The 21-year-old woman who was sentenced to prison is not the only one. Roughly 8,000 people have been charged by Ukraine for colluding with Russia.