A Ukrainian national has been charged in the U.S. for allegedly helping Russian-backed hacking groups launch disruptive cyberattacks on critical infrastructure around the world — including American water systems, food processing facilities, election networks, and nuclear regulators, U.S. authorities announced this week.
Extradition And Arraignment
Victoria Eduardovna Dubranova, 33, was arraigned in Los Angeles on Tuesday after being extradited to the United States earlier this year.
Prosecutors say she worked with two major pro-Russia hacktivist groups — CyberArmyofRussia_Reborn (CARR), also known as Z-Pentest, and NoName057(16) — both allegedly funded and directed by the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (GRU). Dubranova has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Critical Infrastructure Hit
According to the indictments, CARR operated a popular Telegram channel with over 75,000 followers and regularly boasted about its attacks on drinking water systems, government agencies, and industrial facilities across the U.S. and Europe.
The group allegedly carried out destructive attacks, including tampering with water facility pumps across U.S. states — spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of drinking water — and breaching a Los Angeles meat processing facility in November 2024, spoiling thousands of pounds of meat and triggering an ammonia leak that forced an evacuation.
CARR also additionally targeted U.S. election infrastructure, websites belonging to nuclear regulatory entities, and essential industrial facilities worldwide.
A GRU-linked operator using the handle “Cyber_1ce_Killer” allegedly provided targets and paid for DDoS-for-hire services to support the attacks.
NoName057(16): Crowdsourced DDoS Campaigns
The second group, NoName057(16), is described by U.S. officials as a state-sanctioned project, operated partly through a Russian government-created IT center formed under a 2018 presidential order.
The group relied on its proprietary DDoS program DDoSia, which recruited thousands of volunteers globally to participate in coordinated attacks on rail systems, ports, government agencies, and financial institutions across Europe and North America. NoName also maintained a public leaderboard and paid top-performing volunteers in cryptocurrency, creating a competitive cyberattack ecosystem.
Dubranova Faces Up To 32 Years If Convicted
Prosecutors say Dubranova helped both groups carry out their operations. If convicted, she faces up to 27 years in federal prison for the CARR-related charges and up to 5 years for the NoName-related charges. Her trials are scheduled for February 2026 and April 2026.
Global Warnings From U.S. Agencies
U.S. authorities say the case highlights the ongoing and evolving threat from Russian-linked hacktivist groups. On Tuesday, the FBI, CISA, NSA, DOE, and other agencies issued a joint advisory warning that pro-Russia hacktivist groups are increasingly targeting vulnerable critical infrastructure systems, sometimes with the potential for physical damage.
“The defendant’s illegal actions to tamper with the nation’s public water systems put communities and the nation’s drinking water resources at risk,” said Craig Pritzlaff, Acting Assistant Administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in a Tuesday statement.
“These criminal charges serve as an unequivocal warning to malicious cyber actors in the U.S. and abroad: EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and our law enforcement partners will not tolerate threats to our nation’s water infrastructure and will pursue justice against those who endanger the American public.”
Rewards For Information
The U.S. State Department has announced rewards of up to $2 million for information on CARR members and up to $10 million for information on NoName-linked individuals.
“Today’s actions demonstrate the Department’s commitment to disrupting malicious Russian cyber activity — whether conducted directly by state actors or their criminal proxies — aimed at furthering Russia’s geopolitical interests,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg.
“We remain steadfast in defending essential services, including food and water systems Americans rely on each day, and holding accountable those who seek to undermine them.”
