CNN reported on Wednesday – citing Microsoft – that Russian hackers penetrated European military, energy and transport networks, as part of a recently discovered espionage campaign.

It added that Microsoft discovered that Russian hackers exploited a vulnerability in the company's email between April and December 2022.

Russia is often accused of hacking European and U.S. government companies and phones, which Moscow denies. In late 2020, U.S. officials discovered a large-scale cyberespionage operation in a number of federal networks from hackers linked to Russian intelligence.

In early February, the Dutch Cybercrime Service announced that pro-Russian hackers were likely behind a cyberattack on a hospital in the Netherlands and hospitals in other European countries supporting Ukraine.

Hospitals in Britain, Germany, Poland, Scandinavia and the United States have also reported similar attacks.

Earlier this year, websites, airports and public administrations in Germany's financial sector were hit by cyberattacks attributed to a pro-Russian group.

The European Parliament website was also targeted last November, shortly after the institution approved a resolution describing Russia as a "state sponsor of terrorism."