While Australia is 15,000km from Ukraine, experts believe the fallout from sanctions targeted at Russian President Vladimir Putin – and Australia’s decision to support Ukraine as well as allies the United States of America and United Kingdom – has resulted in a surge in targeted cybercriminal activity. Australian organisations have been warned to adopt an enhanced cyber security measures.
Should Australian business operators take warnings of cyber attacks seriously?
The warnings come from a reliable source – the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) Technical Advisory. The ACSC has warned that “malicious cyber activity could impact Australian organisations through unintended disruption or uncontained malicious cyber activities.” In April, security agencies in Australia, the USA, Canada, the UK and New Zealand – the “Five Eyes” nations – issued a joint Cybersecurity Advisory, warning of the threats.
What types of cyber attacks should Australian businesses expect?
Local organisations in Mornington and other parts of Victoria should be ready for a range of attacks ranging from denial-of-service campaigns, website defacement and ransomware. Some organisations might experience theft of information via hacking.
Tom Kellermann, the head of cybersecurity strategy at the enterprise technology company VMware, who is on the Cyber Investigations Advisory Board for the US Secret Service, said Russian state-sponsored cartels are raking in hundreds of billions of dollars a year from cybercrime, and they’re now funnelling some of it back to the Putin regime to help it recover from the economic sanctions put in place by the west.
What does the ACSC recommend for Australian organisations?
The ACSC advises that Australian organisations should urgently review and improve their cyber security incident detection, mitigation and response measures. This includes making sure that logging and detection systems are updated and functioning. Organisations should also make sure that their cyber incident response plans are up to date and review their business continuity planning to ensure they can keep operating in the event of direct or collateral damage as the real-world conflict spills online.
Why do the Russians use cyber attacks to punish Australian organisations?
Professor Matt Warren, director of RMIT University Centre for Cyber Security Research and Innovation, described Russian cyber attacks as a form of “power projection” to punish Australia for our support of Ukraine.
How Uwannawat IT Mornington can safeguard your business from a cyber attack
Our IT experts at Uwannawat IT Mornington are committed ensure businesses are protected from cyber attacks. As a leading Managed Services Provider, we will help safeguard your digital assets, protecting your operations from online threats. We’ve not only reinforced our remote monitoring and management software but have focused on effective and affordable recovery solutions from an attack. Our focus areas include backup and disaster recovery, cloud backup and endpoint protection.
Other services at Uwannawat IT include:
- Installations
- Remote support
- Cloud services
- Help desk
- Network connections
- IT support
- IT managed services
- Hardware and software sales
- Internet and phones
Uwannawat – the best IT services in Mornington
Founded in 2011, Uwannawat IT Mornington offer world-class IT services. Led by highly respected owner and director Graham Reid, our specialist team delivers innovative IT solutions, backed by excellent client support. There’s no need to have a costly IT department. You can have peace of mind knowing that Uwannawat IT Mornington are here for you.
To find out how Uwannawat IT can help your organisation, call 1300 UWANNA or email us. We operate Victoria wide with clients from Geelong to Ballarat to Kyneton to Whittlesea to Lakes Entrance to McCrea and many points in between.
References
Australia faces cyber invasion by Russia | Information Age | ACS
Business cyber ransoms funding Russia’s Ukraine war (afr.com)