The largest power producer in Ukraine, which operates four nuclear power plants, last week survived what officials described as the most powerful attack on Ukraine by Russia hackers since the end of February.
According to the Ukrainian nuclear agency, Energoatom, the attack did not cause any harm.
At the same time, Ukrainians are hitting back at Russian digital infrastructure. In Russia, more than 600 online resources including the federal postal service, pension fund, online banking and video conference platforms were affected by Ukrainian hackers in this month, according to a statement by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
“Cyberspace is a frontline of the 21st century, and victories there are as important as in actual battlefields,” Mykhailo Fedorov, the Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, told ABC News
He’s responsible for establishing the so-called “IT army” — a gathering of more than 230,000 anonymous volunteers who are working together via Telegram, an online messaging platform.
Russia’s assault on Ukraine has extended into the virtual domain as well as on real-life battlegrounds. And here the enemy is choosing very sensitive targets that could impact security for Ukraine, Europe and even the world.
But Fedorov said his country’s cyber security system was more than efficient.
None out of over 800 cyberattacks since February 24 caused real losses for the Ukrainian economy, stopped the banking system or damaged critical infrastructure,” he said.
Some IT companies in Lviv, one of the biggest hubs for the industry, said they weren’t eager to disclose their involvement in the country’s digital defense efforts. Some in the Lviv IT community told ABC News it is a matter of a personal choice for members of their staff to join the fight.
Stepan, a 41-year-old member of the IT army, spoke to ABC News but asked not to use his real name because of fears of reprisal.
“On the second or third day of a new phase of Russian aggression I saw the tweet from the minister of digital transformation about the establishment of a Telegram channel, and that was very helpful to figure it out, what exactly to do to help my country,” Stepan said.
Source: ABC news