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Russian–Ukrainian cyberwarfare

From Wikipedia, in a visual modern way
Pro-Russian bot farm in Ukraine.
Pro-Russian bot farm in Ukraine.

Cyberwarfare is a component of the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. While the first attacks on information systems of private enterprises and state institutions of Ukraine were recorded during mass protests in 2013, Russian cyberweapon Uroburos had been around since 2005. Russian cyberwarfare continued with the 2015 Ukraine power grid hack at Christmas 2015 and again in 2016, paralysis of the State Treasury of Ukraine in December 2016, a Mass hacker supply-chain attack in June 2017 and attacks on Ukrainian government websites in January 2022.

Discover more about Russian–Ukrainian cyberwarfare related topics

Cyberwarfare

Cyberwarfare

Cyberwarfare is the use of cyber attacks against an enemy state, causing comparable harm to actual warfare and/or disrupting vital computer systems. Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, manipulation or economic warfare.

Russia

Russia

Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering 17,098,246 square kilometres (6,601,670 sq mi), and encompassing one-eighth of Earth's inhabitable landmass. Russia extends across eleven time zones and shares land boundaries with fourteen countries. It is the world's ninth-most populous country and Europe's most populous country, with a population of over 147 million people. The country's capital and largest city is Moscow. Saint Petersburg is Russia's cultural centre and second-largest city. Other major urban areas include Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, and Kazan.

Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately 600,000 square kilometres (230,000 sq mi). Prior to the ongoing Russian invasion, it was the eighth-most populous country in Europe, with a population of around 41 million people. On 1 January 2023, the United Nations estimated the Ukrainian population to be 34.1 million, with record low birth rates. It is also bordered by Belarus to the north; by Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; and by Romania and Moldova to the southwest; with a coastline along the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov to the south and southeast. Kyiv is the nation's capital and largest city. Ukraine's state language is Ukrainian; Russian is also widely spoken, especially in the east and south.

Dissolution of the Soviet Union

Dissolution of the Soviet Union

The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the process of internal disintegration within the Soviet Union (USSR) which resulted in the end of the country's and its federal government's existence as a sovereign state, thereby resulting in its constituent republics gaining full independence on 26 December 1991. It brought an end to General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev's effort to reform the Soviet political and economic system in an attempt to stop a period of political stalemate and economic backslide. The Soviet Union had experienced internal stagnation and ethnic separatism. Although highly centralized until its final years, the country was made up of 15 top-level republics that served as homelands for different ethnicities. By late 1991, amid a catastrophic political crisis, with several republics already departing the Union and the waning of centralized power, the leaders of three of its founding members declared that the Soviet Union no longer existed. Eight more republics joined their declaration shortly thereafter. Gorbachev resigned in December 1991 and what was left of the Soviet parliament voted to end itself.

2015 Ukraine power grid hack

2015 Ukraine power grid hack

On December 23, 2015, the power grid in two western oblasts of Ukraine was hacked, which resulted in power outages for roughly 230,000 consumers in Ukraine for 1-6 hours. The attack took place during the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War (2014-present) and is attributed to a Russian advanced persistent threat group known as "Sandworm". It is the first publicly acknowledged successful cyberattack on a power grid.

2016 Kyiv cyberattack

2016 Kyiv cyberattack

A cyberattack happened in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv just before midnight on 17 December 2016, and lasted for just over an hour. The national electricity transmission operator Ukrenergo said that the attack had cut one fifth of the city's power consumption at that time of night.

History

Russian–Ukrainian cyberwarfare is a component of the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Russian cyberweapon Uroburos had been around since 2005.[1] However, the first attacks on information systems of private enterprises and state institutions of Ukraine were recorded during mass protests in 2013. In 2013, Operation Armageddon, a Russian campaign of systematic cyber espionage on the information systems of government agencies, law enforcement, and defense agencies, began, thought to help Russia on the battlefield.[2] Between 2013 and 2014, some information systems of Ukrainian government agencies were affected by a computer virus known as Snake / Uroborus / Turla.[2] In February–March 2014, as Russian troops entered Crimea communication centers were raided and Ukraine's fibre optic cables were tampered with, cutting connection between the peninsula and mainland Ukraine. Additionally Ukrainian Government websites, news and social media were shut down or targeted in DDoS attacks, while cell phones of many Ukrainian parliamentarians were hacked or jammed.[2][3] Ukrainian experts also stated the beginning of a cyberwar with Russia.[4] Cybersecurity companies began to register an increase in the number of cyberattacks on information systems in Ukraine. The victims of Russian cyberattacks were government agencies of Ukraine, the EU, the United States, defense agencies, international and regional defense and political organizations, think tanks, the media, and dissidents.[2] As of 2015, researchers had identified two groups of Russian hackers who have been active in the Russian-Ukrainian cyber war: the so-called APT29 (also known as Cozy Bear, Cozy Duke) and APT28 (also known as Sofacy Group, Tsar Team, Pawn Storm, Fancy Bear).[2]

Discover more about History related topics

Cyberwarfare

Cyberwarfare

Cyberwarfare is the use of cyber attacks against an enemy state, causing comparable harm to actual warfare and/or disrupting vital computer systems. Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, manipulation or economic warfare.

Dissolution of the Soviet Union

Dissolution of the Soviet Union

The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the process of internal disintegration within the Soviet Union (USSR) which resulted in the end of the country's and its federal government's existence as a sovereign state, thereby resulting in its constituent republics gaining full independence on 26 December 1991. It brought an end to General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev's effort to reform the Soviet political and economic system in an attempt to stop a period of political stalemate and economic backslide. The Soviet Union had experienced internal stagnation and ethnic separatism. Although highly centralized until its final years, the country was made up of 15 top-level republics that served as homelands for different ethnicities. By late 1991, amid a catastrophic political crisis, with several republics already departing the Union and the waning of centralized power, the leaders of three of its founding members declared that the Soviet Union no longer existed. Eight more republics joined their declaration shortly thereafter. Gorbachev resigned in December 1991 and what was left of the Soviet parliament voted to end itself.

Turla (malware)

Turla (malware)

Turla or Uroboros is a Trojan package that is suspected by computer security researchers and Western intelligence officers to be the product of a Russian government agency of the same name.

Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation

Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation

In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula, taking it from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War.

Fancy Bear

Fancy Bear

Fancy Bear is a Russian cyber espionage group. Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike has said with a medium level of confidence that it is associated with the Russian military intelligence agency GRU. The UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office as well as security firms SecureWorks, ThreatConnect, and Mandiant, have also said the group is sponsored by the Russian government. In 2018, an indictment by the United States Special Counsel identified Fancy Bear as GRU Unit 26165.

Cyberattacks

Russian cyberattacks

  • Operation "Armageddon", 2013[2]
  • Operation "Snake", February 2014[5][6][7]
  • Attacks on the automated system "Elections", June 2014[8]
  • First Ukraine power grid hack, December 2015. Attacks using the Trojan virus BlackEnergy on energy companies in Ukraine which provide energy to Kyiv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Chernivtsi regions[9][10] This was the first successful cyber attack on a power grid.[9]
  • Second Ukraine power grid hack, December 2016.[11][12]
  • Paralysis of the State Treasury of Ukraine, December 2016[13][14]
  • 2017 cyberattacks on Ukraine, Mass hacker supply-chain attack, June 2017 using Petya virus[15] According to the US Presidential Administration, this attack became the largest known hacker attack.[16]
  • 2022 Ukraine cyberattack, attacks on Ukrainian government websites, January 2022, one day after US-Russian negotiations on Ukraine's future in NATO failed.[17][18]
  • Attacks in February 2022, after Russian troops invaded eastern regions of Ukraine, took down several major Ukrainian governmental and banking websites. U.S. intelligence attributed the attacks to Russian attackers, although the Russian government denied involvement.[19]

Ukrainian cyberattacks

Discover more about Cyberattacks related topics

2015 Ukraine power grid hack

2015 Ukraine power grid hack

On December 23, 2015, the power grid in two western oblasts of Ukraine was hacked, which resulted in power outages for roughly 230,000 consumers in Ukraine for 1-6 hours. The attack took place during the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War (2014-present) and is attributed to a Russian advanced persistent threat group known as "Sandworm". It is the first publicly acknowledged successful cyberattack on a power grid.

BlackEnergy

BlackEnergy

BlackEnergy Malware was first reported in 2007 as an HTTP-based toolkit that generated bots to execute distributed denial of service attacks. In 2010, BlackEnergy 2 emerged with capabilities beyond DDoS. In 2014, BlackEnergy 3 came equipped with a variety of plug-ins. A Russian-based group known as Sandworm is attributed with using BlackEnergy targeted attacks. The attack is distributed via a Word document or PowerPoint attachment in an email, luring victims into clicking the seemingly legitimate file.

2016 Kyiv cyberattack

2016 Kyiv cyberattack

A cyberattack happened in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv just before midnight on 17 December 2016, and lasted for just over an hour. The national electricity transmission operator Ukrenergo said that the attack had cut one fifth of the city's power consumption at that time of night.

Donetsk People's Republic

Donetsk People's Republic

The Donetsk People's Republic is an unrecognised republic of Russia in the occupied parts of eastern Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast, with its capital in Donetsk. The DPR was created by militarily-armed Russian-backed separatists in 2014, and it initially operated as a breakaway state until it was annexed by Russia in 2022.

Private military company

Private military company

A private military company (PMC) or private military and security company (PMSC) is a private company providing armed combat or security services for financial gain. PMCs refer to their personnel as "security contractors" or "private military contractors".

Channel One Russia

Channel One Russia

Channel One is a Russian state-controlled television channel. It is the first television channel to broadcast in the Russian Federation. Its headquarters are located at Ostankino Technical Center near the Ostankino Tower in Moscow.

Surkov leaks

Surkov leaks

In October 2016, Ukrainian hacker group CyberHunta leaked over a gigabyte of emails and other documents alleged to belong to Russian political operative and senior Kremlin official Vladislav Surkov. Known as Russia's "grey cardinal", Surkov served as a political adviser to President Vladimir Putin in the conflict in eastern Ukraine and is the architect of Russia's ideology of sovereign democracy.

IT Army of Ukraine

IT Army of Ukraine

The IT Army of Ukraine is a volunteer cyberwarfare organisation created at the end of February 2022 to fight against digital intrusion of Ukrainian information and cyberspace after the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The group also conducts offensive cyberwarfare operations, and Chief of Head of State Special Communications Service of Ukraine Victor Zhora said its enlisted hackers would only attack military targets.

Mykhailo Fedorov

Mykhailo Fedorov

Mykhailo Albertovych Fedorov is a Ukrainian politician, and businessman. He served as a Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Digital Transformation from 2019 to March 2023. On 21 March 2023 his duties and title was expanded to Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science and Technology – Minister for Digital Transformation.

Ministry of Digital Transformation

Ministry of Digital Transformation

The Ministry of Digital Transformation is a government ministry in Ukraine that was established on 29 August 2019 when Mykhailo Fedorov was appointed as Minister of Digital Transformation in the Honcharuk Government.

Cyberwarfare

Cyberwarfare

Cyberwarfare is the use of cyber attacks against an enemy state, causing comparable harm to actual warfare and/or disrupting vital computer systems. Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, manipulation or economic warfare.

Telegram (software)

Telegram (software)

Telegram Messenger is a globally accessible freemium, cross-platform, encrypted, cloud-based and centralized instant messaging (IM) service. The application also provides optional end-to-end encrypted chats, popularly known as secret chat and video calling, VoIP, file sharing and several other features. It was launched for iOS on 14 August 2013 and Android on 20 October 2013. The servers of Telegram are distributed worldwide with five data centers in different parts of the world, while the operational center is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Various client apps are available for Smart TV, desktop and mobile platforms including official apps for Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and Linux. There are also two official Telegram web twin apps, WebK and WebZ, and numerous unofficial clients that make use of Telegram's protocol. Telegram's official components are open source, with the exception of the server which is closed-sourced and proprietary.

Russian-Ukrainian cyberwarfare amidst Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022

In June 2022, Microsoft published the report on Russian cyber attacks, and concluded that state-backed Russian hackers "have engaged in "strategic espionage" against governments, think tanks, businesses and aid groups" in 42 countries supporting Kyiv.[31]

In April 2022, Microsoft report shared new details on Russian cyberwarfare against Ukraine, for instance Microsoft has reported that in some cases, hacking and military operations worked in tandem against Ukraine related target.[32][33]

Source: "Russian–Ukrainian cyberwarfare", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, February 4th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian–Ukrainian_cyberwarfare.

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Further Reading

Cyberwarfare

Cyberattacks during the Russo-Georgian War

Cyberattack

Surkov leaks

Petya and NotPetya

2017 Ukraine ransomware attacks

2020 United States federal government data breach

2022 Ukraine cyberattacks
See also
References
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  2. ^ a b c d e f Jen Weedon, FireEye (2015). "Beyond 'Cyber War': Russia's Use of Strategic Cyber Espionage and Information Operations in Ukraine". In Kenneth Geers (ed.). Cyber War in Perspective: Russian Aggression against Ukraine. Tallinn: NATO CCD COE Publications. ISBN 978-9949-9544-5-2. Archived from the original on 2016-08-16. Retrieved 2016-05-10.
  3. ^ Gertz, Bill. "Inside the Ring: Cybercom's Michael Rogers confirms Russia conducted cyberattacks against Ukraine". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on 2021-06-02. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  4. ^ "Russian Electronic Warfare in Ukraine: Between Real and Imaginable - Jamestown". Jamestown. Archived from the original on 2017-05-26. Retrieved 2017-05-27.
  5. ^ Dunn, John E (7 March 2014). "Invisible Russian cyberweapon stalked US and Ukraine since 2005, new research reveals". Techworld. Archived from the original on 13 April 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  6. ^ "The Snake Campaign". BAE Systems. 2014. Archived from the original on 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  7. ^ "Uroburos. Highly complex espionage software with Russian roots" (PDF). G Data SecurityLabs. February 2014. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-10-07. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  8. ^ Прес-служба Держспецзв’язку (23 May 2014). "Коментар Держспецзв'язку щодо інциденту в ЦВК". Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  9. ^ a b Кім Зеттер, Wired (17 March 2016). "Хакерська атака Росії на українську енергосистему: як це було". Texty.org. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  10. ^ "Міненерговугілля має намір утворити групу за участю представників усіх енергетичних компаній, що входять до сфери управління Міністерства, для вивчення можливостей щодо запобігання несанкціонованому втручанню в роботу енергомереж". Міністерство енергетики та вугільної промисловості України. 12 February 2016. Archived from the original on 22 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  11. ^ Kim Zetter (January 10, 2017). "The Ukrainian Power Grid Was Hacked Again". Vice Motherboard. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  12. ^ "Основной версией недавнего отключения электричества в Киеве названа кибератака хакеров". ITC.ua. 19 December 2016. Archived from the original on 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  13. ^ "Щодо роботи інформаційно-телекомунікаційної системи Казначейства". Урядовий портал. 6 December 2016. Archived from the original on 10 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
  14. ^ "Україна програє кібервійну. Хакери атакують державні фінанси". Економічна правда. 9 December 2016. Archived from the original on 10 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
  15. ^ Anton Cherepanov, ESET (30 June 2017). "TeleBots are back: Supply-chain attacks against Ukraine". We Live Security. Archived from the original on 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  16. ^ "Statement from the Press Secretary". whitehouse.gov. 2018-02-15. Archived from the original on 2021-02-03. Retrieved 2021-03-03 – via National Archives.
  17. ^ Kramer, Andrew E. (2022-01-14). "Hackers Bring Down Government Sites in Ukraine". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-01-15. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  18. ^ Alspach, Kyle (2022-02-04). "Microsoft discloses new details on Russian hacker group Gamaredon". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on 2022-02-06. Retrieved 2022-02-06.
  19. ^ Lauren Feiner (2022-02-23). "Cyberattack hits Ukrainian banks and government websites". CBNC. Archived from the original on 2022-02-23. Retrieved 2022-02-23.
  20. ^ Alexey Minakov (1 June 2016). "Антивірусна компанія ESET на службі терористів Донбасу". Інформнапалм. Archived from the original on 16 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  21. ^ Антон Черепанов (18 May 2016). "Operation Groundbait ("Прикормка"): Аналіз інструментарію спостереження" (PDF). ESET. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 June 2016. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  22. ^ Censor.NET. ""Operation May 9": Ukrainian hackers deface several terrorists' propaganda sites. VIDEO+PHOTO". Censor.NET. Archived from the original on 2020-07-21. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  23. ^ "9 hacks on MAY 9: successful operation of Ukrainian hackers #OpMay9 (VIDEO)". InformNapalm.org (English). 2016-05-11. Archived from the original on 2020-07-15. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  24. ^ "Хакери знищили сайт російських пропагандистів "Anna News" і розмістили відеозвернення". InformNapalm.org. InformNapalm. 29 April 2016. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  25. ^ "Hackers In Ukraine Deface Separatist Websites To Mark Victory Day". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Archived from the original on 2020-06-25. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  26. ^ "ЗС РФ використовували станцію Р-330Ж у боях за Дебальцеве. Знімки робочого терміналу". InformNapalm.org. InformNapalm. 2 May 2016. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  27. ^ "Злом пропагандистів РФ. Частина 1. Зенін: сприяння терористам, офшори та відпочинок у Європі". Інформнапалм. 6 June 2016. Archived from the original on 15 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  28. ^ "Взлом пропагандистов РФ. Часть 2: переписка о МН17". Інформнапалм. 14 June 2016. Archived from the original on 16 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  29. ^ Christopher Miller (November 2, 2016). "Inside The Ukrainian 'Hacktivist' Network Cyberbattling The Kremlin". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Archived from the original on 2022-01-03. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  30. ^ Pearson, James (2022-02-27). "Ukraine launches 'IT army,' takes aim at Russian cyberspace". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  31. ^ "Microsoft: Russian Cyber Spying Targets 42 Ukraine Allies". VOA. Retrieved 2022-07-12.
  32. ^ "Microsoft Report Details Relentless Russian Cyberattacks On Ukraine". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 2022-07-12.
  33. ^ "Microsoft: Russian hacks often accompany Ukraine attacks". Associated Press. 27 April 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-18.
External links
  • Inside The Ukrainian 'Hacktivist' Network Cyberbattling The Kremlin
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