Ukraine and its NATO allies are girding for potential Russian government-backed hacks of electric grids and other critical infrastructure as winter closes in.
It’s a threat that government officials and cybersecurity experts alike are growing increasingly worried about as the Russian ground invasion grinds on and Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN grows more desperate to gain and hold territory.
Russia has a long history of going after Ukraine’s critical infrastructure in the winter months (even temporarily turning off the lights for millions in Ukraine in attacks in 2015 and 2016).
Ukrainian officials have stressed in recent months that they are expecting a ramp-up in attacks from Russia as the war continues, including a focus on attacking the Ukrainian energy and financial sectors during the winter through kinetic and cyber means.
