Italian Foreign Minister Tajani Targeted by Pro-Russian Hackers

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has revealed that his personal data was circulated on the dark web for several days before becoming public. He stated that hackers actively sought additional information about him and his family by offering payment to anyone able to provide it.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the incident, linking it to pro-Russian hacker activity and describing the trade in officials' personal information as a serious threat requiring firm action.

According to Ansa, the hacker group NoName057(16) placed an eighteen-person bounty targeting individuals considered hostile to the Russian Federation. Besides Tajani, the list includes Rome prosecutor Francesco Lo Voi, postal police chief Ivano Gabrielli, and Aviano mayor Paolo Tassan-Zanin.

Aviano hosts one of the main United States Air Force bases in Europe, while Lo Voi and Gabrielli took part last year in Operation Eastwood, an Europol and Eurojust-coordinated investigation against NoName057(16) infrastructure in July 2025.

Tajani said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot accepted his proposal to discuss hybrid threats and cyberattacks at the G7 foreign ministers meeting in Paris on 9–10 November 2026. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrij Sybiha was also expected to attend.

The Italian government has not provided detailed information on what personal data was leaked, and there is no confirmation that classified diplomatic documents or internal Foreign Ministry systems were breached.

The case has raised broader questions about how prepared Italy's political class is to recognize and address national security vulnerabilities linked to Kremlin strategies.