Bundeswehr grounds Quantum Systems' Vector drones for a time after a cyberattack

The Bundeswehr grounded its Vector reconnaissance drones, which it calls Falke, in late October after a cyber incident at their maker Quantum Systems, the Financial Times reported. Quantum Systems confirmed the cyberattack in a statement on 12 November.

The company said it found the attack in late October and stopped it with the help of the authorities, and that flying its drones, such as the Vector and the Reliant, no longer poses any risk. It told Reuters that the Bundeswehr was the only customer to ground its systems, as a precaution.

According to a source quoted by AFP, the attackers placed a malicious file, disguised as a normal update, on the server that sends updates for QBase, Quantum Systems' mission planning software. Germany's military counterintelligence, its domestic intelligence agency and the federal IT security office BSI are investigating, and sources quoted by AFP say some evidence points to Russia.