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Russia Linked to Cyberattacks Targeting UK Businesses, Says NATO Cyber Operations Chief
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
Russia may be behind a series of devastating cyberattacks targeting British businesses, as the Kremlin continues its hybrid assault on Europe, according to NATO’s head of cyber operations Brigadier General Ümit Ersoy.
Brigadier General told The Times on December 3 that Moscow might be supporting ransomware groups responsible for attacks on major companies like Marks & Spencer (M&S) and Jaguar Land Rover, both of which were severely impacted earlier this year by elusive hacker groups, some of whom were young English-speaking individuals.
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According to The Independent on December 4, M&S experienced a dramatic 99 percent drop in profits during the first half of this year following an April cyberattack, attributed to the Scattered Spider hacker group. Four individuals were arrested in connection with the breach.
Similarly, another hacker group claimed responsibility for a cyberattack on Jaguar, forcing the company to halt production at several key sites in August. The economic impact of the breach was estimated at up to £2 billion, as reported by The Times.
Brigadier General Ersoy emphasized that the challenges faced today are significantly more complex than they were just six months ago. He explained that Russia has been cultivating a highly effective offensive cyber capability over several years.
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“The threats from state actors, non-state actors or those supported by some states are getting more sophisticated and the techniques and tactics used are progressing in a massive way,” he said.
Reflecting on his two years in the position, Ersoy expressed concern about the West’s slow response to the evolving cyber threat.
“Obviously we are talking about a rogue regime,” he stated. “Just because we find it immoral doesn’t mean they would refrain from working with criminals.”
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He further warned that there are countless potential scenarios that could create serious problems, even from a simple oversight or administrative mistake.
“There are one million scenarios that may somehow create a problem for you, so even because of a simple administrative measure that you forgot to take, anything may happen,,” Ersoy concluded.
Earlier, the Ukrainian-Crimean partisan group Atesh reported that it’s cyber unit successfully disabled a crucial Russian online system used for issuing military draft summonses.
The group stated that “Cyber-Atesh” unit focused on the infrastructure supporting Russia's electronic mobilization system, taking the portal reestrpovestok.rf offline.
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