By Steve Neavling
The FBI is warning the private sector in the U.S. about potential state-sponsored cyber attacks from Russia as the country prepares for a possible invasion of Ukraine.
The warning was issued in a Liaison Information Report dated Feb. 20 and obtained by Newsweek.
“The FBI Cyber Division, in coordination with the FBI’s Office of Private Sector (OPS), prepared this LIR to inform the private sector about the threat of Russian state-sponsored advanced persistent threat (APT) cyber activities, while tensions with Russia are heightened,” the report stated.
“The FBI is engaging in efforts to support the U.S. response and to secure the Homeland from any Russian actions; historically, Russian state-sponsored APT cyber activities increase when tensions are high with Russia,” the report added.
The report points to the weakening security situation on Ukraine’s border.
“Due to the increased threat of Russian military action, the security situation in Ukraine could deteriorate with little notice,” the report said. “The United States, along with its Allies and partners, has underscored its readiness to impose significant costs on Russia if it takes further military action against Ukraine, potentially further increasing the volume/severity of Russian APT cyber activities.”
According to the report, Russian APT actors “have used spear phishing and brute force cyber network attacks (CNA), while exploiting known vulnerabilities against accounts and networks with weak security.”
“Russian APT actors have targeted a variety of U.S. and international critical infrastructure, including entities in the Defense Industrial Base, Healthcare and Public Health, Energy, Telecommunications, and Government Facilities Sectors,” the report stated. “Finally, Russian malign influence actors have and continue to use social media accounts, overt and covert media connections, and message amplification to articulate narratives designed to exclude or isolate groups from one another.”
