The team of the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the Head of the State Service of Special Communications of Ukraine met with American partners – Ambassador-at-Large for Cyberspace Nathaniel Fick and Head of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Agency (CISA) Jen Easterly.
Cyber defense in time of war
The current full-scale war is not only on the battlefield but also in cyberspace. That is why Ukraine needs to develop its cyber defense capabilities. This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov at the International Cybersecurity Forum “Resilience in Cyberwar”.
“Despite the large number of attacks, the enemy did not manage to affect the state’s defense capabilities and deprive the population of vital services. We were able to survive because we regularly strengthened our cyber resilience, invested in this area, worked with international partners and attracted the best specialists. Developments in cyber are as important for defense-tech as drones, robots and electronic warfare. That is why we are doing everything to ensure that cyber innovations are born in Ukraine,” Fedorov said.
The minister also said that Russia’s full-scale invasion began in cyberspace. On January 14, 2022, Russian hackers attacked the websites of government agencies. Since then, at least 5,000 cyber incidents related to Russian cyberattacks have been recorded. Most of them targeted government organizations, central and local authorities, as well as the security and defense sector.
In addition, Mykhailo Fedorov emphasized the need to strengthen cooperation between all cybersecurity actors, update legislation in line with NATO standards, and provide quality training for cybersecurity specialists in higher education institutions.
Strengthening cyber defense
It is important for Ukraine to strengthen its cyber defense as the enemy has intensified cyber attacks. The partners discussed Ukraine’s short- and long-term needs in this area:
- security of the telecom infrastructure,
- security of cloud services,
- harmonization of the US and EU regulatory frameworks,
- training and professional development for Ukrainian specialists.”
The partners are already providing reliable support in the cybersecurity track, including the launch of the Tallinn Mechanism in December 2023, which will bring together 11 countries and help Ukraine become stronger in cyberspace.
Under this initiative, partners will coordinate assistance to Ukraine to support and strengthen national cybersecurity, protect critical infrastructure, and prevent Russian cyber operations. The first coordination meeting will take place in the near future.
