Revealed Cases of State Treason, Espionage, Spread of False Information Among Soldiers, and Cybercrime

Since the beginning of military operations, the National Security Service has been carrying out its obligations on a 24-hour schedule, including external intelligence, counterintelligence, and military counterintelligence, as stated by Assistant Director of the NSS, Armen Abazyan, during a joint press conference with representatives of the Investigative Committee and the NSS.

According to him, there have been revealed cases related to state treason and espionage, the spread of false and defamatory information among soldiers, cybercrime, and various instances of fake publications on the internet.

Abazyan noted that the work being carried out in the direction of external intelligence, particularly the information-analytical work directed towards Azerbaijan, has allowed the assessment of not only the likelihood of military operations being expanded by Azerbaijan but also the military-political ambitions pursued by the adversary during such operations. Conversations among the peaceful militants participating in the military operations have been recorded, as well as personal data of several mercenary militants deployed by Turkey and Azerbaijan in the war zone.

The NSS is also carrying out extensive work at checkpoints operating within Armenia. In accordance with the joint orders of the Minister of Defense, the Chief of Police, and the NSS Director, over 10 checkpoints have been established in various sections of the roads in Ararat, Gegharkunik, Vayots Dzor, and Syunik regions, where round-the-clock operations are conducted to uncover possible foreign spies' infiltration and the identification of diversionary groups in Armenia. Several instances of transporting weapons and ammunition into Armenia have been recorded, and relevant operations have been conducted in collaboration with the police in that direction.

The NSS Assistant Director reported that since the beginning of military operations, there has been an unprecedented increase in the number of attacks on the state system regarding information security. Specifically, since September 27, 2020, about 692,000 cases of cyberattacks have been registered.

According to him, the service has been able to ensure the normal functioning of official websites and state information systems. In response to fake publications posted on the internet, 245 instances have been registered during preventive operations aiming to disperse panic on social networks concerning combat operations and to share photographs and videos related to them, which have been forwarded to the Armenian police for further action.