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Russia Cyberattack Sanctions Overview:
- Who: Cybersecurity experts are warning that Russia could soon launch sophisticated cyberattacks on United States financial institutions and energy infrastructure.
- Why: The attacks could come in retaliation to sanctions placed on Russia by the United States and other nations in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
- Where: Targets across the United States could be vulnerable to attack.
Increased sanctions against Russia after its invasion of Ukraine could trigger a series of cyberattacks on financial institutions and energy infrastructure that would almost certainly impact United States consumers, experts say.
The U.S. government is on high alert for the possibility of retaliatory cyberattacks from Russia after it imposed new sanctions on the country last week amid its invasion of Ukraine, CNN reports.
Russia has shown an ability to cause significant disruption and damage in the past through its cyberattacks.
Former cybersecurity advisor to the White House Michael Daniel said global cybersecurity experts are bracing for a potential global malware contagion with self-propagating capabilities like a 2017 attack that targeted energy companies, the power grid, bus stations, gas stations, the airport and banks.
They are also bracing for direct attacks on Western organizations, particularly on power and energy suppliers and distributors, he said. Past attacks have seen America’s largest fuel pipelines shut down for several days, causing headaches at the pumps, and another attack hit one of the world’s largest meat producers, JBS.
“If the situation escalates in cyberspace, there could be some unanticipated organizations that end up in the crosshairs,” Daniel said.
Bank Execs Warned To Prepare For Cyberattacks
Executives at major U.S. banks have also been warned to prepare for cyberattacks. Biden’s sanctions aimed at crippling the Russian financial system make American banks a key target for retaliation, experts say.
As recent history has shown, Russian cyberattackers increasingly seem to target large-scale United States infrastructure, and there’s only so much consumers can do about it, apart from make sure their own devices are resilient to attack.
Make sure your software is up to date, and consider taking additional security measures such as two-factor authentication, experts say.
An October 2021 cybersecurity report from Microsoft found Moscow-linked hacking groups are now increasingly targeting United States government organizations with government targets accounting for more than half of their targets for the year through June 2021, compared to just 3% the previous year.
Recently, legislation that would require operators of critical infrastructure to report cybersecurity episodes within 72 hours was reintroduced in the Senate after it failed to get passed as part of last year’s defense policy spending bill.
The news comes as the Colonial Pipeline Company faces a lawsuit lodged by consumers and businesses after it had to shut down its pipeline due to a Russian cyberattack in May 2021. The attack was perpetrated by a Russian hacking group that demanded a ransom after it allegedly gained access into Colonial’s systems.
Colonial ultimately paid the hackers $4.4 million to end the assault, in addition to shutting down the pipeline serving vast swaths of the Eastern Seaboard for a time.
If you were affected by a data breach, you might be eligible to join or file a class action lawsuit. Lawyers are currently investigating recent data breaches nationwide and the impact that they’ve had on Americans (links to paid attorney content).
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