On December 30, 2021, in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pinned the Order of Friendship on the suit of his Hungarian counterpart Péter Szijjártó. Although the medal was presented by Lavrov, it was Russian President Vladimir Putin himself who decided to award it. Not coincidentally, the medal, which is in the form of a wreath of olive branches encircling a globe, includes the inscription “Peace and Friendship” in Cyrillic on the back, is the highest Russian state decoration that can be awarded to a foreigner.

For almost two decades, hackers with Snake have been forcing their way into government networks. They are considered one of the most dangerous hacker groups in the world. Who they work for, though, has always been a matter of pure speculation. But reporters with the German public broadcasters BR and WDR  have discovered some clues, and they all lead to the Russian secret service FSB.

On December 30, 2021, in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pinned the Order of Friendship on the suit of his Hungarian counterpart Péter Szijjártó. Although the medal was presented by Lavrov, it was Russian President Vladimir Putin himself who decided to award it. Not coincidentally, the medal, which is in the form of a wreath of olive branches encircling a globe, includes the inscription “Peace and Friendship” in Cyrillic on the back, is the highest Russian state decoration that can be awarded to a foreigner.

For almost two decades, hackers with Snake have been forcing their way into government networks. They are considered one of the most dangerous hacker groups in the world. Who they work for, though, has always been a matter of pure speculation. But reporters with the German public broadcasters BR and WDR  have discovered some clues, and they all lead to the Russian secret service FSB.