Unfortunately, what used to be forebodings and worries are turning into reality. Cyber security researchers have identified dangerous malicious activities related to the recent war between Russia and Ukraine. A situation that is increasingly intensifying tensions between the two countries and which, at the same time, is endangering Europe and the United States. What was feared materialized in an alarm of potential attacks from Russia using the well-known instant messaging platforms Discord And Trello.
Predictions about Russia’s behavior centered not only on cryptocurrencies, as a solution to sanctions threatened by Biden, but also attacks Ransomware. In the end, straight from Russia, it now appears that we are all in danger.
The crisis between Russia and Ukraine is having a strong IT impact from which you need to protect yourself. It was to discover these attacks Unit 42, a kind of elite unit that brings together all the world-renowned cyber threat researchers. It is a cybersecurity expert intelligence organization ready to respond to the most dangerous attacks. Let’s find out together what awaits us.
Trello and Discord: All users are in danger
To confirm this danger is theNational Cybersecurity Agency which is alerting all users of these attacks via its portal. These are malicious activities also perpetrated through well-known instant messaging platforms Discord and Trello.
We bring you the warning that theNational Cybersecurity Agency is spreading to warn of these dangerous ones cyber attacks. Referring to Trello and Discord he has declared:
For the foregoing, if not strictly necessary for the purposes of your organization, it is advisable to carefully evaluate access to these messaging platforms in order to raise the general safety posture.
Unit 42 he found that in recent days, with the intensification of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, cyber attacks have increased. It is a series of attacks DDoS which affected both the Ukrainian government and the banking institutions. As of February 23, 2022, a new malware variant called HermeticWiper was detected in Ukraine. It is not excluded that these threats will soon reach Europe and the United States as well.
The Russian threat is real and very serious
From what can be seen, the relationship of Unit 42 highlights how the Russian threat is not only a danger, but is concrete and very serious. The situation therefore requires that everyone take note of possible cyber attacks along with all the precautions to protect themselves. As indicated, for example, byNational Cybersecurity Agency access to platforms such as Trello and Discord. But let’s see what the experts have specified Unit 42:
Consistent with our previous reports on the subject, several Western governments have issued recommendations for their populations to prepare for cyber attacks that could disrupt, disable or destroy critical infrastructure. The crisis in Ukraine has already led to an increase in Russian cyber activity. […]
Future attacks could target US and Western European organizations in retaliation for increasing sanctions or other political measures against the Russian government. We recommend that all organizations proactively prepare to defend against this potential threat.
Protect yourself it is essential not to fall victim to these dangerous attacks which mainly affect important and governmental organizations. Ukrainian citizens are already taking steps to protect their savings deposited in their online checking accounts from possible Russian attacks both physical and computer. In any case, it is necessary to implement some useful measures to counter the IT impact of the escalation of the crisis between Russia and Ukraine:
- constantly check that the security patch of the software we use are updated to the latest version. Many companies such as Trello and Discord or others including management and operating systems will publish security updates on a regular basis;
- prepare for possible ransomware and / or destruction of data by making regular backups and protecting all sensitive information as best as possible;
- beware of possible phishing and smishing attacks through email, SMS or banner notifications.
