Bauman Moscow State Technical University, a prestigious institution on the banks of the Yauza River, has been revealed to host a secret faculty known as Department 4, or 'Special Training', which prepares students for careers in Russia's military intelligence directorate, the GRU. This discovery comes from over 2,000 internal documents obtained by a consortium of journalists from outlets including the Guardian, Der Spiegel, Le Monde, the Insider, Delfi, and VSquare.
Secret Faculty Exposed
During a visit to the university in April last year, President Vladimir Putin toured the campus and spoke of ambitious space missions, but made no mention of the covert programme. Department 4, embedded within the university's military training centre, is divided into three specialist streams, with the most prominent being the 'Special Reconnaissance Service', code 093400. The documents reveal that the GRU directly controls recruitment and grading, with officers conducting exams and overseeing placements.
The department is led by Lieutenant Colonel Kirill Stupakov, a signals intelligence officer who signed a contract with GRU Unit 45807 in 2022. His teaching materials include methods for electronic eavesdropping and covert surveillance, such as cameras disguised as smoke detectors and keyboard loggers. Another instructor is Viktor Netyksho, a sanctioned major general who commanded the hacking group Fancy Bear, indicted for interfering in the 2016 US presidential election.
Curriculum: Hacking and Disinformation
Core courses include 'Defence against technical reconnaissance', spanning 144 hours over two semesters. Students learn password attacks, software vulnerabilities, and trojans, and must conduct practical penetration tests and develop a computer virus. The curriculum also covers the structure of US and British military intelligence, the use of western intelligence in Ukraine, and information warfare. Advanced students complete seminars on disinformation campaigns, creating social media videos using manipulation and propaganda.
Teaching materials reinforce Kremlin narratives, portraying the war in Ukraine as 'inevitable' and alleging 'genocide' against Russians in Donbas. Western intelligence services have warned of increasing Russian hybrid activities, including cyber-attacks and influence operations targeting critical infrastructure.
Graduates Assigned to GRU Units
Among the 69 students who graduated in spring 2024 was Daniil Porshin, who maintained near-perfect grades and played football for the faculty. Upon graduation, he was assigned to Fancy Bear. Fifteen others from his cohort were directed into GRU units, including one posted to Unit 74455 in Anapa, home to the hacker group known as Sandworm. Sandworm has been accused of destructive cyber-attacks, including targeting Ukraine's power grid in 2015 and the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Not all students succeed: dozens have been dismissed, and evaluations by senior GRU officers can be harsh, such as 'Insufficient understanding of how to carry out a remote network attack.' The programme continues to expand, with the latest cohort not graduating until 2027.
While the documents provide unprecedented insight, insiders note that Bauman is just one of several elite universities used to recruit gifted students into military intelligence. Another university, Mirea, is reportedly even more crucial for training hackers.
