Cyberwarfare: The war beyond fire & explosions.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has lead to a war with fierce fighting and many causalities including loss of civilian lives and destruction of infrastructure. As unfortunate as it is, war does come bring along destruction and calamities, but there is a war currently being raged by both sides that doesn't meet the eye or gain as much attention, but could have consequences that are almost equally as bad.

Ever since the turn of the last century, the world has continued to shrink through the different developments in technology, from transport to communication. The development of fast and reliable computers over the previous decades, led to the computerization and automation of many of the previous processes, which required a lot of manpower and brainpower to run efficiently. Some of these systems include the power grid and the water supply systems, which are of utmost importance in the sustenance of any modern civilization.

Modern warfare extends far from physical war and into the cyberspace. Living in a connected world where many of our infrastructure is controlled by computers, has allowed the possibility of attacks on such systems as acts of sabotage, which could lead to drastic consequences and even loss of life. Cyberwarfare is defined as the use of computer technologies to conduct a war, and it is a growing concern for governments, militaries and companies. The line between cyber attacks and physical warfare is sometimes difficult to see as both types of attacks can have similar consequences. The most famous example of this being Stuxnet, reported to be the first cyber weapon used in a conflict which attacked an Iranian nuclear power plant in 2010 causing significant damage.

There have been incidents where hackers have been able to infiltrate infrastructure systems such as water supply and the electric grid, not just military and government systems. This is what makes cyber warfare so dangerous, it extends beyond traditional warfare and can be used against civilians as well. Back in February last year, certain hackers managed to infiltrate the systems at a water treatment plant in a city in Florida, altering the composition of the drinking water in an attempt to poison it.  Fortunately, authorities were able to mitigate the attack before it could reach the public drinking water supply. Such incidents have proven that cyber attacks on infrastructure is a possibility and poses significant risk if proper security protocols are not adhered to. A study by the RAND corporation published in 2013 details numerous incidents of such attacks from around the world over the past 20 years. It also mentions that there have been major incidents in nearly every region of the world, including the Middle East, Asia, Europe and South America.

Currently there have been numerous incidents in Russia and Ukraine, which could be linked to acts of cyberwarfare from either sides and independent groups which support either side. A conflict between Russia and the Ukraine has been going since 2014, when Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea territory. In recent weeks there has been increased tension between Ukraine and Russia, which could be related to the situation in eastern Ukraine.

While it is not yet confirmed whether these attacks originated from a nation state or are simply just hackers with no links to any nation state, the possibility that they came from a cyber attack originating from outside of Russia is real. Despite many attempts at tightening security of systems in order to curtail cyber attacks, the attacks continue to occur. Research conducted by FireEye in 2015 showed that of the 58 countries that have been breached by a cyber attack, 32 of them were hit more than 10 times.

This shows just how easy it is for anyone with enough time and resources to be able to infiltrate these systems and cause significant damage or steal information. As individuals who use technology and the internet on a daily basis, we need to be more careful, as phishing attacks are more common these days. Phishing is a cyber attack where an email or some other form of communication is sent to a person or company in order to get them to click on a link which directs them to a fake website. Once the victim clicks the link, the hacker can then collect personal information and use it for malicious purposes. The only way that these attacks can be stopped is by being aware of how they work and what they are trying to do.

Investigations on recent cyber attacks on infrastructure have shown that phishing attacks were used to compromise the system. Unsuspecting employees clicking on innocent seeming, but in fact malicious links have lead to the compromise of these systems. Therefore as individuals it's our duty to pay more attention emails and applications and confirm if they originate from legitimate sources before clicking any links or installing them. We should also make sure that any software that we use are updated frequently as vulnerabilities are found and fixed regularly, so it's important to have the latest patches and updates.