Fake news on military exercise published after several websites were hacked

The valstietis.lt and baltictimes.com news websites were hacked and a fake news report was published in the Lithuanian and English languages, stating that the River Neris was polluted with radioactive substances following mass weapon testing.

Lithuanian officials call it a conspiracy aimed at the country's army.

"It's fake news aimed at compromising the Lithuanian army and the exercise involving NATO allies," Ruta Apeikyte, spokesman for the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense, told BNS Lithuania on Wednesday night.

In her words, representatives of the valstietis.lt news website confirmed that the fake news report was published after the website was hacked. BNS Lithuania has not been able to contact baltictimes.com representatives yet.

The fake news report stated that several shells containing enriched uranium fell into the River Neris and contaminated water reached households in Lithuania's second-largest city of Kaunas.

Some 4,000 troops from ten NATO countries are currently taking part in the Iron Wolf exercise in Lithuania.

It’s not the first time Lithuanian news websites are hacked and fake news on the national defense system is published.

Lithuania's intelligence states that Russia's intelligence and security services pose the biggest threat to Lithuania's cyberspace.