THE article, published on 29 January 2026, argues that the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina sit within a broader geopolitical frame in which Russia’s cyber actions are intended to disrupt or influence major events. It notes that Russia’s current Olympic isolation stems from the invasion of Ukraine and subsequent sanctions, with the IOC suspension cited as a backdrop to a shifting security environment.
According to World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the 2016 breach of the agency was carried out by Fighting Ursa (aka APT28, Fancy Bear, Strontium, Forest Blizzard), a group attributed to Russia’s GRU, which leaked athlete data to discredit regulators. The piece also chronicles 2018 Pyeongchang actions by Razing Ursa (aka APT44, Sandworm, Iridium) who targeted IT infrastructure and used false-flag tactics around the Olympic setup.
It highlights AI-enabled disinformation campaigns by Storm-1679 and Storm-1099 ahead of the 2024 Paris Games, and warns that similar threat activity could shape the 2026 Games. The analysis concludes that the threat landscape has shifted from espionage to disruption, with recommendations for zero-trust, anomaly detection in IoT, and content provenance to counter AI-generated content.