“Get out or face our wrath!” the group of hacktivists have warned all companies who are still doing business in the country, giving them a window of 48 hours before they take action.
The online hacker group Anonymous has tweeted a message on their Twitter page, alongside an image that is compiled of logos of several companies. The message reads as follows: ““We call on all companies that continue to operate in Russia by paying taxes to the budget of the Kremlin’s criminal regime – pull out of Russia! We give you 48 hours to reflect and withdraw or else you will be under [sic] our target!”
The group then went on to post a separate tweet directly targeted towards Swiss food manufacturer Nestle, who have yet to cease their operations in Russia or even inform about their intentions to do so in the future.
“Nestle, as the death toll climbs, you have been warned and now breached,” it said. “Anonymous is holding you responsible for the murder of defenceless children and mothers.”
Press Release: We call on all companies that continue to operate in Russia by paying taxes to the budget of the Kremlin’s criminal regime: Pull out of Russia! We give you 48 hours to reflect and withdraw from Russia or else you will be under our target! #Anonymous #OpRussia pic.twitter.com/7HO9UzeBoc
— Anonymous TV 🇺🇦 (@YourAnonTV) March 20, 2022
While it remains to be seen how much weight is hidden behind the words tweeted by the group, opinions by users were divided about whether or not the hackers were justified to threaten the companies, as many claimed that shutting down their businesses in Russia may not be such a simple matter for all firms.
“Burger King and Subway can’t do that because in Russia they operate under a franchise,” one user pointed out. When the two fast-food giants gave an order for their local restaurants to be shut down, they were refused by their business partners, leaving them with their hands tied.
However others debunked these justifications, as one user added that “Corporate offices of Burger King and Subway can stop supplying franchises with products. It’s just that simple.”
Other companies that were listed out by the Anonymous group, such as Citrix, Otis and Citigroup, have already shut down their operations in Russia or are planning to do so in the future.
