A pro-Russian hacker group calling itself "Server Killers" claimed responsibility for a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) cyberattack that disrupted multiple Norwegian public digital services over three days. The attacks have been ongoing since Monday, targeting platforms managed by the Norwegian Digitalization Agency (Digdir), which is responsible for making Norway's public services more digital and user-friendly. Digdir spokesperson Are Kvistad described it as "the biggest attack against Digdir solutions that we have ever experienced." The DDoS activity pushed massive traffic toward the agency in order to block online services, including systems that enable citizens to use one login across several public services. Kvistad said the agency managed to keep services running "practically all the time," indicating partial but not total degradation of availability.

Server Killers made their claim in a Telegram post on Wednesday that was widely reported by Norwegian media. They asserted that they had launched the cyberattack on Norway shortly after the country renewed its security cooperation with Ukraine on Monday. On that day, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre was in Kyiv and announced Norway would provide 8.5 billion Norwegian kroner (9.2 billion US dollars) to Ukraine from next year’s state budget for a third year in a row. During the visit, Norway and Ukraine also committed to further cooperation on drone technology and other forms of modern warfare. Norwegian officials did not comment on the hackers’ claim by the time of publication.

The article states that countries in Europe are on high alert as Russia increases sabotage and malign activity across the continent following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Officials view such attacks as attempts to undermine public support for Ukraine, intimidate European societies, and drain investigative resources. As broader context, the piece recalls a 2023 incident in which Norwegian authorities said Russian hackers likely targeted suspected saboteurs at a dam in the country, gaining remote access to a digital system that allowed them to control one of the dam’s valves and open it to spill water into a river. A three-minute video showing the dam’s control panel allegedly operated by a pro-Russian cybercriminal group was posted on Telegram at the time.

The article further notes that last year Danish authorities blamed Russia for cyberattacks against infrastructure and websites in Denmark in 2024 and 2025. Danish officials said a pro-Russian group "Z-meters" carried out a "destructive attack" on a water utility company in 2024, and that a separate group, NoName057(16), was responsible for a campaign on Danish websites ahead of the 2025 local elections. The story says both groups have links to the Russian state. According to Norwegian media cited in the article, Server Killers are linked directly or indirectly to previous cyberattacks in Norway and elsewhere in Europe.

The piece is formatted as an AP World News article titled "Pro-Russian hackers claim responsibility for major cyberattack on Norway’s public digital services." The page shows it was updated at 1:20 PM AET on August 21, 2026. It includes a "Most Read" sidebar on unrelated topics, and a "Related Stories" module referencing other cybersecurity and infrastructure hacking cases in the United States. The main focus, however, is the claimed pro-Russian DDoS campaign against Norwegian public-service portals and its timing in relation to Norway’s renewed multi‑billion‑kroner security assistance package for Ukraine.

A pro-Russian hacker group calling itself "Server Killers" claimed responsibility for a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) cyberattack that disrupted multiple Norwegian public digital services over three days. The attacks have been ongoing since Monday, targeting platforms managed by the Norwegian Digitalization Agency (Digdir), which is responsible for making Norway's public services more digital and user-friendly. Digdir spokesperson Are Kvistad described it as "the biggest attack against Digdir solutions that we have ever experienced." The DDoS activity pushed massive traffic toward the agency in order to block online services, including systems that enable citizens to use one login across several public services. Kvistad said the agency managed to keep services running "practically all the time," indicating partial but not total degradation of availability.

Server Killers made their claim in a Telegram post on Wednesday that was widely reported by Norwegian media. They asserted that they had launched the cyberattack on Norway shortly after the country renewed its security cooperation with Ukraine on Monday. On that day, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre was in Kyiv and announced Norway would provide 8.5 billion Norwegian kroner (9.2 billion US dollars) to Ukraine from next year’s state budget for a third year in a row. During the visit, Norway and Ukraine also committed to further cooperation on drone technology and other forms of modern warfare. Norwegian officials did not comment on the hackers’ claim by the time of publication.

The article states that countries in Europe are on high alert as Russia increases sabotage and malign activity across the continent following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Officials view such attacks as attempts to undermine public support for Ukraine, intimidate European societies, and drain investigative resources. As broader context, the piece recalls a 2023 incident in which Norwegian authorities said Russian hackers likely targeted suspected saboteurs at a dam in the country, gaining remote access to a digital system that allowed them to control one of the dam’s valves and open it to spill water into a river. A three-minute video showing the dam’s control panel allegedly operated by a pro-Russian cybercriminal group was posted on Telegram at the time.

The article further notes that last year Danish authorities blamed Russia for cyberattacks against infrastructure and websites in Denmark in 2024 and 2025. Danish officials said a pro-Russian group "Z-meters" carried out a "destructive attack" on a water utility company in 2024, and that a separate group, NoName057(16), was responsible for a campaign on Danish websites ahead of the 2025 local elections. The story says both groups have links to the Russian state. According to Norwegian media cited in the article, Server Killers are linked directly or indirectly to previous cyberattacks in Norway and elsewhere in Europe.

The piece is formatted as an AP World News article titled "Pro-Russian hackers claim responsibility for major cyberattack on Norway’s public digital services." The page shows it was updated at 1:20 PM AET on August 21, 2026. It includes a "Most Read" sidebar on unrelated topics, and a "Related Stories" module referencing other cybersecurity and infrastructure hacking cases in the United States. The main focus, however, is the claimed pro-Russian DDoS campaign against Norwegian public-service portals and its timing in relation to Norway’s renewed multi‑billion‑kroner security assistance package for Ukraine.