Killnet
Pro-Russian hacktivist group known for denial-of-service attacks on Western targets.
When ENISA reported on 22 September 2026 that only 23.8 per cent of NoName057(16)'s attack claims held up, Killnet was the earlier case: its 2023 denial-of-service campaign against US hospitals drew more publicity than damage.
Last refreshed: 12 October 2026
Did Killnet's hospital attacks do as much harm as claimed?
Timeline for Killnet
Mentioned in: ENISA finds most NoName057(16) claims fail
Cybersecurity: Threats and DefencesBackground
Killnet is a pro-Russian hacktivist group, active since at least January 2022. HC3, the US health department's cyber unit, says it relies mainly on distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks built from public scripts and IP stresser services.
In January 2023 HC3 warned that Killnet threatened US healthcare after an alleged list of target hospitals appeared online. HC3 later counted more than 90 DDoS attacks on health systems and hospitals in that campaign, with outages usually lasting hours or days. Killnet also claimed attacks on European governments. HC3 said any link to Russia's FSB or SVR intelligence services was unconfirmed.
Killnet set the template for later pro-Russian DDoS crews such as NoName057(16), whose publicity likewise outran the harm done.