(MENAFN) The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) is investigating allegations that Russian hackers accessed and leaked hundreds of classified military documents online. Reports indicate that the files, which appeared on the dark web—a hidden part of the internet accessible only via special software—include details of eight RAF and Royal Navy bases, as well as names and email addresses of MoD personnel.

Maintenance and construction contractor Dodd Group, reportedly affected by the incident, confirmed it had experienced a ransomware attack. A spokesperson stated: “We can confirm that the Dodd Group recently experienced a ransomware incident whereby an unauthorised third-party gained temporary access to part of our internal systems. We took immediate steps to contain the incident, swiftly secure our systems and engaged a specialist IT forensic firm to investigate what happened. We are taking these claims extremely seriously and are working hard to validate this.”

The MoD said it was “actively investigating the claims that information relating to the MoD has been published on the dark web” and added: “To safeguard sensitive operational information, we will not comment any further on the details.”

According to reports, the leaked documents include information on strategic locations such as RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, which hosts US Air Force F-35 jets.

This incident comes amid a series of notable data breaches involving the MoD. In August, personal information of thousands of Afghan evacuees brought to the UK was exposed after a subcontractor suffered a breach. Last year, the personal data of an unspecified number of serving UK military personnel was accessed during another significant cyberattack.

The MoD and associated contractors are now under heightened scrutiny as investigations continue to assess the scope of the alleged breach and implement measures to prevent further compromise of sensitive military information.

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