Biden, on Monday, warned that U.S. officials have collected « evolving intelligence » to suggest that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks against …
Biden, on Monday, warned that U.S. officials have collected « evolving intelligence » to suggest that the Russian government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks against the United States amid its multi-front war against Ukraine. Katko, R-N.Y., on the sidelines of the House Republican Issues Conference, said it is « good » that Biden is warning Americans, noting that a cyberattack from Russia could be « quite severe. » « Assume there is a heightened chance of that happening, given Russia has got their backs agains the wall and things aren’t going well in Ukraine, » Katko told Fox News. « Assume that is probably going to happen, and act accordingly. » Last month, the Department of Homeland Security warned U.S. organizations at all levels that they could face cyber threats stemming from the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Biden administration has worked to strengthen cyber defenses after a string of ransomware attacks last summer, with foreign malign actors targeting pieces of U.S. critical infrastructure. In June 2021, a ransomware assault shut down the U.S.-based meat plants of the world’s largest meatpacker, Brazil-based JBS. The White House said the hack was likely carried out by a criminal group based in Russia. The attack on JBS came just weeks after the largest U.S. fuel pipeline, the East Coast’s Colonial Pipeline, was targeted by a criminal group originating in Russia. Biden, during his summit in Geneva with Russian President Vladimir Putin in June 2021, raised the issue of ransomware. Biden, at the time, said he told Putin that « certain critical infrastructure should be off limits to attack. » Biden said he gave a list of « 16 specific entities defined as critical infrastructure, » saying it ranged from energy to water systems. Putin, though, during his press conference after the meeting, denied that Russia was responsible for cyberattacks and instead claimed that most cyberattacks in the world were carried out from the U.S. But Katko slammed Biden for his strategy. « I wanted to scream, » Katko told Fox News. « Everything is off limits—they shouldn’t be doing it at all, and if they are doing it, we should be fighting back hard.
