Italy foreign minister says he has been targeted by pro-Russian hackers over Ukraine backing

The Italian foreign minister said hackers were seeking more information about him and his family, and linked the leak to Rome’s support for Ukraine.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Saturday that his personal data had been published on the dark web by what he described as pro-Russian hackers, and that the move was linked to the Italian government’s support for Ukraine.

Tajani, who is also deputy prime minister, said in a post on X that “backing in a transparent way the freedom and independence of a sovereign state” had made him a target. He said the hackers were seeking further information about him and his family, and were willing to pay for it.

The attacks were also a response to the Foreign Ministry’s efforts to strengthen cybersecurity, Tajani added. Screenshots seen by Reuters showed Tajani’s picture on a list of 18 “citizens hostile to the Russian Federation,” which also included cybersecurity experts.

The material was found in a section of the dark web accessible through the Tor network during monitoring by cybersecurity authorities, a person close to the minister told Reuters, adding that further investigations were under way.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, one of Ukraine’s strongest backers among Western leaders, expressed her support for Tajani and called the sale of confidential information about public officials “a matter of serious concern.”

Moscow has not commented on the incident. Russia has consistently denied involvement in cyberattacks or hacking operations abroad.