Last Friday, a cyberattack severely disrupted online systems managed by **Rosobrnadzor**, Russia's education watchdog. The incident forced the suspension of assessments at schools and vocational education institutions across the country, with students encountering anti-government messages on the agency's **Edutest** platform instead of assessment questions. **Rosobrnadzor** confirmed on Monday that the attacks specifically targeted its online resources and those of **FIOKO**, a subordinate organization responsible for evaluating education standards. ### Black Spark Claims Responsibility The pro-Ukrainian hacking group **Black Spark** has claimed responsibility for the disruption. The group identifies itself as an underground resistance movement operating within Russia and has a history of targeting Russian technology companies. **Ekaterina Mizulina**, a prominent pro-Kremlin activist and head of Russia's **Safe Internet League**, reported receiving numerous accounts from students in the Moscow region who encountered the messages during their assessments. She shared a photograph purportedly showing the anti-government messages on school computers, stating, "Halfway through the assessment, when they moved on to another question, the same image appeared on everyone's screens, urging them to take part in anti-government activities." ### Impact on Nationwide Assessments The cyberattack coincided with a critical phase of Russia's nationwide assessment program, which involved 9th-grade students in 29 regions completing questionnaires. These assessments, running from October 12 to October 29, evaluate educational quality, school safety, student well-being, and their attitudes and values. They also measure students' application of knowledge in subjects like mathematics, science, reading, and financial literacy. It's important to note that these assessments evaluate institutions, not individual students, and do not impact grades or graduation eligibility. **Rosobrnadzor** has not yet disclosed how the attackers gained access to the assessment platform or whether any data was compromised. ### Black Spark's Stance on Minors In a statement released Saturday, **Black Spark** asserted that Russian schoolchildren welcomed the disruption and sent numerous messages of support. However, the group explicitly denied any intention of recruiting minors into their activities, stating, "Under no circumstances does our movement recruit children into its activities, and we categorically oppose any attempts to involve minors in the war." Despite this, they encouraged adults to join their campaign against the Russian government. **Black Spark** has previously targeted Russian technology infrastructure. In August, the group claimed to have breached **Microolap**, a Russian software developer. While **Microolap** acknowledged some system compromise, it disputed the hackers' claims regarding access to its network monitoring platform or the theft of data belonging to major Russian companies.