According to Microsoft, a cyber attack by Ukrainians could disrupt the functioning of the country’s overall information technology infrastructure.
Microsoft warned on Sunday that a massive cyber attack on Ukrainian government ministries and sites could disrupt the government’s entire IT infrastructure if Kiev saw Moscow’s hand in it. Several Ukrainian government sites were the target of a cyber attack on Friday, which took place in the wake of high tensions between Kiev and Moscow, which have been accused of invading its Ukrainian neighbor.
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“Malware, which looks like a ransomware but lacks a ransom recovery mechanism, is intended to destroy and disable targeted sites, not to collect ransom money,” the US giant said in a post on its blog. In addition, according to Microsoft, the attack appears to have targeted more companies than initially thought. “We have detected this malware in dozens of government-owned organizations, but they also belong to NGOs and information technology organizations in Ukraine. At this stage, we cannot say what the operational cycle of this attack is and how many organizations may have been killed,” the company added.
He said he had not yet identified the source of the attacks. Ukraine and the West regard it as the hand of Moscow, and some believe it could be a precursor to a ground offensive. Ukraine said on Friday that there were “preliminary traces” of possible involvement of Russian secret services. The Kremlin immediately denied the allegations. The cyber-attack comes as tensions between Ukraine and Russia are at an all-time high, with Kiev accusing it of concentrating troops on its border in preparation for a possible invasion.
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