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Ukraine Sets Up Strategic Center to Combat Cyberattacks

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense has established an incident response center specifically dedicated to countering cyberattacks on critical military infrastructure.

In an announcement earlier this week, the ministry noted that the new hub will function similarly to what other countries refer to as a “military computer emergency response team” or MilCERT.

The first MilCERT, established in Latvia in 2018, was tasked with preventing cyber incidents and conducting safety checks on communication networks within the defense sector.

In addition to these responsibilities, Ukraine’s new center will collaborate with NATO countries to effectively address cyber threats.

Kyiv already has a dedicated team focused on cybersecurity, but the creation of a separate unit is expected to enhance its capabilities in defending critical infrastructure.

“We are constantly looking for new specialists to join our team,” Deputy Defense Minister for Digital Development Kateryna Chernohorenko stated. “We have the best experts working with us who say that here they face the most serious challenges in their professional careers.”

Increasing Cyber Threats

Since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, Ukraine has experienced a notable surge in cyber threats.

Facebook’s parent company Meta disclosed that several groups of hackers linked to Russia and Belarus successfully broke into the social media accounts of Ukrainian military officials at the onset of the war.

Ukraine’s nuclear operator Energoatom also reported an “unprecedented” cyberattack on its website, which has been blamed on Moscow.

Last year, Kyiv’s cyber defense chief revealed that Russian hackers attempted to infiltrate the computer systems of Ukrainian law enforcement agencies to access evidence of war crimes.

The US has previously warned that Russia is becoming increasingly creative in its cyber operations, urging Ukraine to further bolster its cyber defenses.

“It is important to us that we do not give in to time or political promises in favor of the security of our systems because data about our military is sensitive data,” Chernohorenko explained.

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