The government websites of Ukraine got taken down by DDoS attacks

February 28, 2022
Government Websites Ukraine Taken Down DDoS Cyberattacks

Researchers noticed a widespread distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack against Ukraine and its government websites. Nonetheless, these DDoS attacks are reportedly unrelated to the recent Gamaredon group attacks against the country.

The DDoS attacks conducted by the threat actors had targeted the websites of important sectors of the Ukrainian government, including military websites, public radio, news channels, defence ministry, and government forums.

Moreover, the DDoS attack has also targeted two Ukrainian banks (Oschadbank and Privatbank) that disrupted their ATM services. Although the affected banks’ websites are still accessible, bank clients could not log into their online banking accounts.

The Ukrainian Center for Strategic Communication and Information security revealed that the Privatbank clients suffered several issues regarding their online payments and banking mobile app experience. Other customers also observed incorrect balances and recent unwanted transactions.

Security researchers have not yet identified the threat actors of this widespread DDoS attack against Ukraine. However, they have proven that the attacks may be from a state-backed group since the severity of the onslaught is more significant than an average DDoS attack.

 

Ukraine suffers from an onslaught of hybrid warfare attacks.

 

The Security Services of Ukraine (SSU) stated that their nation is experiencing an ongoing wave of hybrid attacks by malicious threat actors affiliated with the Russian government.

Moreover, the attacks are more inclined to use social media networks and mass media since the threat actors can immediately infect many people.

The SSU has exterminated bot farms that target their citizens with phoney information, bomb threats, and fake news to instigate panic. Last January, the security agency obstructed approximately 120 attacks that target state institutions.

The ongoing cyberespionage campaign of threat actors against Ukraine is gaining much attention globally. This wave of denial-of-service attacks is one of the most prominent against government websites and is now being investigated by the national police.

About the author

Leave a Reply