The Dutch AIVD security service is increasingly busy dealing with digital attacks and clandestine attempts to influence policy, largely from Russia, the organisation said at the publication of its annual report on Tuesday.

‘In its efforts to renew its profile as a superpower, Russia is not afraid to use cold war techniques such as clandestine political influence,’ the report said. ‘Russia is thereby making clever use of the freedoms offered by the open and democratic society in the west.’

In particular this involves spreading disinformation and propaganda, which has a lot of impact due to the internet. Russia runs numerous fake accounts which it uses to actively steer public discussion on social media websites, the report said.

The situation is one of a ‘far-reaching and persistent digital espionage attack’. At the same time, classic spies are also active in the Netherlands, the Dutch spy service said.

In February, for example, the New York Times reported that opponents of the Ukraine treaty with the EU used a special ‘Ukrainian team,’ a group of émigrés whose sympathies lay with Russia to help tilt Dutch public opinion.

Democratic

The situation within Russia itself is also a concern and the country is becoming less democratic, the report said.

And the relationship between the Netherlands and Russia has come under pressure following Russian criticism of the professionalism and integrity of the Dutch investigation of the shooting down of MH17.

At the same time, the threat of jihadi terrorism is also undiminished. After the attacks in Brussels, Nice and Berlin, the AIVD received 5,400 tip-offs from the police, citizens and foreign intelligence services. Of the tip-offs, 238 led to a concrete investigation.