Azerbaijan accused of hacking government critics
The government of Azerbaijan has been accused of waging a "targeted and coordinated cyber campaign" against some of its fiercest critics, according to a report by Amnesty International. Malware is being used with the "express intention of gathering as much private information as possible" about long-time victims of government repression, said Claudio Guarnieri, a senior technologist for the human rights watchdog. In October 2016, Human Rights Watch warned that a vicious crackdown on government critics was taking place in Azerbaijan's capital, Baku.

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MOSCOW (Sputnik)A watchdog accused the Azerbaijani authorities on Friday of a series of allegedly state-sponsored cyberattacks aimed at gaining access to the personal information of government critics.

“Our research reveals that a targeted and coordinated cyber campaign is being waged against critical voices in Azerbaijan, many of whom are long-time victims of government repression. The malware used has been designed with the express intention of gathering as much private information as possible about a target. Given the profiles of those targeted, it is not hard to see why victims believe the authorities are responsible," Senior Technologist at Amnesty International Claudio Guarnieri said as quoted in the report.

In September, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders Michel Forst visited Baku. In his report, he talked about the deterioration of the human rights situation in Azerbaijan and the pressure on civil society, including "enormous tax penalties."