Sweden Fears Russia May Have Sabotaged Transmitter

Swedish authorities confirmed reports on May 17, 2016,  that a 300-meter telecommunications transmitter had been deliberately sabotaged. The incident occurred this past Sunday,  just outside Boras in southwestern Sweden. The transmitter served 84,680 households with T.V. and radio signals, and also served police, military, and rescue services who use the transmitter for internal encrypted communications.

Jan Johansson, led investigator of the case, noted there were no questions about the incident in that it was a deliberate act of sabotage. Asa Ragnar, Communications Director for Teracom, the Swedish state-owned telecommunications company, said Teracom will be  tightening security to its remaining 53 transmitter stations. Media outlets report that the perpetrators were able to access the transmitter tower by utilizing an open security door. The perpetrators used a variety of tools to forcefully remove bolts that were  used to secure metal cables with pylons to concrete pillars.

The security of the transmitter has been previously been called into question prior to Sunday’s incident.  A report by SVT television, detailed how a group of kids were videotaping themselves climbing the tower a few days prior to the incident. Swedish radio also reported that there were no surveillance cameras on the premise. The facility is equipped with an alarm system, the transmitter is not protected.

A man told The Aftonbladet Newspaper that he was able to walk around the remains of the transmitter Monday afternoon. He bypassed all security just by taking an alternate route through the woods, and was never questioned, approached, or restricted from accessing the site.

A number of recent incidents have authorities and officials concerned about the country’s critical infrastructure. On May 4, 2016, Police claimed at least two suspects cut a cable to another transmitter tower in the same region as the Boras incident. Then on May 10, Sweden’s bomb squads responded to a mysterious package left by another transmitter, but was later deemed a harmless.

While no individual or entity has been linked to the incident, most Swedes feel that if was international sabotage,  Russia would be the prime suspect. For years, Sweden has viewed Russia as their biggest geopolitical threat, and claimed that Russia threatened them if they continued to pursue efforts in joining NATO.

In 2014, reports indicated that a Russian submarine was in the Baltic Sea, 30-miles off the coast of Stockholm, which triggered a massive hunt by the Swedish Navy to locate the Submarine. Other incidents of aggression included Russian-war planes buzzing over Sweden and unauthorized flying over the Baltic Sea.

However, the Ukraine cyber-attack last December, only increased tensions between Sweden and Russia, as the Ukraine is a close ally of Sweden.  The Dagens Nyheter Newspaper  reported that according to security services 2016 would be the year that Russian spies go after infrastructure. Then on March 20, 2016, several Swedish newspapers including Dagen Nyheter were knocked off line for several hours by hackers believed to be from Russia.

Authorities are left with three possible scenarios it was either a prank, a domestic terrorist, or an international terrorist group or rogue state. The breach shows the vulnerabilities in Sweden’s security sector as they have a man power shortage in the military, and police are checking passports Oresund bridge. This gives whom ever is responsible more opportunities to strike at Sweden’s largely defenseless critical infrastructure.