WPF condemns the recent incidents of hacking targeting exiled journalists who voice criticism against authoritarian regimes in Russia and Belarus.

An attempt was made to hack into the phone of Irina Pankratova, a journalist associated with the publication, The Bell. Irina’s employer organization confirmed the news on their Telegram channel, the attackers tried to access phone and text communication records of the journalist, however remained unsuccessful in doing so. The attacker is yet to be identified. Even though the motive behind the attack is not apparent, Irina is not the first person who has been targeted in this manner in the country, raising concern within civil society.