Hackers in Germany gained access to secret chats: Signal accounts of hundreds of officials were compromised
25 April 19:11
The German Federal Prosecutor’s Office has opened a criminal investigation into suspected espionage in connection with a phishing campaign targeting users of the Signal messaging app. The information, first reported by Der Spiegel, was confirmed on Saturday, April 25, by a spokesperson for the office, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
The investigation began back in mid-February. According to Spiegel, the victims of the attacks included members of virtually all parliamentary factions in the Bundestag, journalists, and NATO military personnel.
According to the same publication, the Signal accounts of German Education Minister Karin Prün and Construction Minister Verena Hubertz were compromised. According to Der Spiegel, this takes the scale of the attacks to a new level. Earlier, the publication reported that Bundestag President Julia Klöckner —the second-highest-ranking official in the country and a member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) executive committee—had fallen victim to a phishing campaign.
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The party’s executive board, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who serves as its chairman, had until recently been communicating via a Signal group chat. Officials from the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) personally visited the chancellor regarding this matter—however, according to available data, his account showed no anomalies.
Method of attack
The BfV and the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) had already warned of such attacks back in February, and last week published an updated bulletin with specific recommendations.
Attackers send messages asking recipients to enter a PIN code or click on a link or QR code. Once they gain access, they can operate in private group chats under a false identity.
Similar attacks via Signal have been reported since winter 2025 in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands as well. The Netherlands attributes responsibility for the phishing campaign to Russia. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office has so far refrained from commenting on a possible sponsor.
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