“Today, the UK confirms for the first time the scale of the GRU's actions at the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in the Republic of Korea,” the statement reads.
The “GRU cyber unit” allegedly tried to “disguise itself as North Korean and Chinese hackers” during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Games.
“His actions were directed against broadcasters, the ski resort, officials and sponsors of the Games,” the minister added.
According to him, the GRU used malicious software to erase data against the IT systems of winter games, and also attacked devices throughout the Republic of Korea using a VPN filter.
In addition, “Russian military intelligence” reportedly conducted “cyber intelligence against officials and organizations” this summer at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics before the games were postponed.
According to the British Foreign Office, the targets included game organizers, logistics services and sponsors.
Earlier, the US Department of Justice accused six Russians of involvement in a series of hacker attacks.
According to Washington, they are "current and former employees of the GRU."
The charge states that the Russians are involved in cyberattacks related to Ukraine, Georgia, elections in France, and the 2018 Olympic Games in South Korea.
Russia has repeatedly denied allegations of cyber espionage.