Biden Warns US Companies About Chances Of Cyberattacks From Russia
President Joe Biden warns US companies about possible cyberattacks from Russia. He asked them to make sure they close their digital doors amid evolving intelligence. Russia is considering launching cyberattacks against the US targets critical infrastructure as the war in Ukraine continues.
Anne Neuberger, the top cybersecurity assistant of Biden, has expressed her frustration at a White House news conference. Her frustration is on some critical infrastructure, and entities have ignored alerts from federal agencies. They ignore fixing known software problems that Russian hackers could exploit.
Neuberger said that despite these repeated warnings, we continue to see adversaries compromising systems using known vulnerabilities for which there are patches. That makes it much easier for attackers than it should be.
The federal government has been warning about the threats posed by Russian state hackers since long before the country invaded Ukraine last month to American businesses. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has started a Shields Up campaign to support companies strengthen their securities. And they have urged companies to back up their data, activate multi-factor authentication, and take other measures to improve cyber hygiene.
Neuberger said there is no intelligence to suggest a specific Russian cyberattack against US targets but added there had been an increase in “preparatory activity,” such as scanning websites and looking for susceptibilities, that is common among nation-state hackers.
In a statement, Biden said that Russia could launch a cyberattacks against US companies targets in retribution for the unprecedented economic costs we have assessed on Russia through sanctions, and also he warns all US Companies to check about their cyber safeties.
Biden said that it’s part of the Russian playbook.
The United States and its supporters have implemented a series of sanctions aimed at crippling the Russian economy. Biden announced recently that the United States would send more anti-aircraft and anti-armor weapons and drones to help Ukraine.
Vice president of intelligence analysis at Mandiant, John Hultquist, said cyberattacks give Russia the ability to strike back.
He said that cyber attacks are a means for them to exact costs without crossing a major red line.
Russia is supposed to be a hacking powerhouse, but its revolting cyberattacks since invading Ukraine have been muted compared to what some feared. Russia has carried out major cyberattacks against Ukraine in recent years, including the devastating NotPetya attack in 2017 that extended far and wide and generated more than $10 billion in damage worldwide.
Neuberger said Russia’s cyberattacks against Ukraine continue, though he did not provide details. She said that the Biden administration has made it clear that there will be consequences if Russia engages with the US in cyberspace.
She said we are not looking for a conflict with Russia, but we respond if Russia provokes a cyber attack against the United States.
The Russian embassy did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
