Vladimir Putin may have been thwarted in his hopes of capturing Kiev within days of the Russian invasion on February 24th, but the protracted war in Ukraine is not just an extended battle when it comes to the fighting on the ground and in the air.
The conflict being fought with guns and missiles is also being carried out in cyberspace, with Russian hackers frequently making attacks on IT infrastructure in western nations that are sympathetic to Ukraine.
While government organisations may be well-equipped with the knowledge and expertise to fight off attacks, the same may not be true for many ordinary businesses. Moreover, as the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has warned, the “long haul” means an extended period in which organisations must continue to remain vigilant and have their guard up.
This means firms seeking IT support and services to protect against such attacks in the early days of the war should continue to do so as further threats emerge and new tactics are tried.
Speaking about the situation, NCSC director for national resilience and strategy Paul Maddinson said: “From the start of the conflict in Ukraine, we have been asking organisations to strengthen their cyber defences to help keep the UK secure, and many have done so.”
However, he added, now the situation has become a “long haul”, it is “vital that organisations support their staff through this demanding period of heightened cyber threat”.
For this reason, the NCSC has produced further guidance on supporting staff so they don’t feel burned out when watching for threats.
Quite apart from the threat posed by Russian operators, the fact remains that Britons and their businesses are vulnerable to cyber crime from many quarters.
New research by NORD VPN has revealed that 330 Britons are hacked every minute on average.
Cyber security expert at the firm Adrianus Warmenhoven said: “Hacking has reached epidemic proportions in the UK.”
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