Poland: A Cyberattack Stirs Election Uncertainty
In the days leading to Poland's presidential election, the ruling pro-European party experiences a cyber assault.
In the lead-up to the presidential election on May 19, 2025, Poland's ruling centrist party, Civic Platform (PO), is grappling with a cyberattack. On Friday, May 16, the party's websites slipped offline, accused of being an orchestration by "Russian hackers." Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed the ongoing attack on the social network X.
The presidential race is seeing Rafal Trzaskowski, the Civic Platform's candidate, leading in opinion polls. He's predicted to acquire approximately 30% of the votes, with nationalist historian Karol Nawrocki, backed by the main right-wing opposition party, Law and Justice (PiS), second with around 25%.
The country's National Institute for Research on Cybersecurity issued a warning on Thursday, exposing attempts to interfere with the electoral campaign through messages resembling Russian propaganda narratives. A total of thirteen candidates are participating in the presidential race of this 38 million-strong EU and NATO member country.
Recent revelations highlight a cyberattack directed at Poland's ruling party Civic Platform (PO), and its allied parties, with Russian hackers assumed to be behind the Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks[1][2][3][5]. The assault on PO's web presence started on May 16, 2025, posing a strategic risk to the ruling party's campaign communication before the election.
Russia's alleged involvement and cyberattacks targeting the electoral process have intensified concerns about the democratic process and election security in Poland[3][4]. While the attack disrupted party websites, there are no confirmed accounts of the broader election infrastructure being compromised.
As the election theatre unfolds, officials and political circles are likely preoccupied with addressing these cyber threats and ensuring a secure election process for the country.
- The government and political circles in Poland are concentrating on addressing the cybersecurity threats, such as the ongoing Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks suspected to be orchestrated by Russian hackers, to ensure a secure election process.
- The cyberattacks aimed at Poland's ruling party, Civic Platform (PO), and its allies, have led to escalating concerns about the democratic process and cybersecurity in the general-news sphere, as well as in politics and crime-and-justice.
- With the presidential election on May 19, 2025, approaching, technology plays a critical role in political campaigns, as cybersecurity issues, like the current attacks on PO's websites, can have a significant impact on the election outcomes, particularly in the race between Rafal Trzaskowski and Karol Nawrocki.
