States Hide Behind Hacktivists

State cyberunits increasingly operate through or mimic activist/hacktivist personas to carry out embarrassing or coercive operations while preserving deniability. Publishing private material from senior officials (photos, old emails) is being used as both intelligence and public‑pressure tactics rather than classical espionage alone. — This reframes many hacks from isolated criminal acts into tools of state coercion and diplomatic signalling with consequences for attribution, response norms, and officer security.