UKRAINIAN GOVERNMENT WEBSITES HIT BY MASSIVE CYBERATTACK

Fri 14 January 2022:

Officials confirmed that several Ukrainian government websites were down on Friday morning as a result of a “massive” cyberattack.

“As a result of a massive cyberattack, the websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a number of other government agencies are temporarily down,” Oleg Nikolenko, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote on Twitter.

“Our specialists have already started restoring the work of IT systems, and the cyber police has opened an investigation,” he added.

As a result of a massive cyber attack, the websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a number of other government agencies are temporarily down. Our specialists have already started restoring the work of IT systems, and the cyberpolice has opened an investigation.

— Oleg Nikolenko (@OlegNikolenko_) January 14, 2022

The seven ministries’ websites, as well as the cabinet, the Treasury, the National Emergency Service, and the state services website, where Ukrainians’ electronic passports and vaccination certificates are held, were all down.

Ukrainians’ personal data has been disclosed to the public domain, according to a message on the websites in Ukrainian, Russian, and Polish. “Be afraid and expect the worst. This is for your past, present and future,” the message read, in part.

While it is unclear who was behind the strikes, they come amid rising tensions with Russia and after discussions between Moscow and the West failed to achieve major results this week.

The European Union’s top diplomat condemned the hack from Brest, northwestern France, where the bloc’s foreign affairs ministers are meeting for an informal summit.

He also stated that an emergency meeting of the EU’s Political and Security Committee’s ambassadors has been called to determine how the bloc may respond and what technical support Ukraine can receive.

Borrell also stressed that there is no proof yet as to who or what is behind the attack, “but we can imagine.”

German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock did not react to the cyberattack but highlighted she will be travelling to Moscow next week for talks “at all levels.”

“Diplomacy, especially in times of crisis, is characterised by great perseverance, patience and nerves of steel,” she said

Hundreds of thousands of Russian troops and military equipment have amassed at Ukraine’s border, fueling fears that the country is preparing to invade its neighbor.

Moscow has disputed this, but has given a list of demands to NATO, including a promise that Ukraine would never be admitted to the security alliance. This demand was rejected by Washington and its European allies, who emphasized that each sovereign state had the right to make its own security judgments.

Early this week, negotiations between Washington and Moscow, followed by talks between NATO and Russia, failed to yield any quick results.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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