Cybersecurity expert Vyacheslav Davydenko shared his thoughts on what proportion of active American offensive cyber operations is known, how the US has helped Ukraine in cyberspace, and how painful their refusal to participate in such activities could be for Ukraine. The expert’s thoughts and arguments follow.
Cybersecurity expert Vyacheslav Davydenko shared his thoughts on what proportion of active American offensive cyber operations is known, how the US has helped Ukraine in cyberspace, and how painful their refusal to participate in such activities could be for Ukraine. The expert’s thoughts and arguments follow.
Due to the secrecy of cyber operations, public information about specific US actions against Russia is extremely limited. There is also no publicly available information about the share of operations against Russia among all offensive US cyber operations. One can only find general information that the US conducted offensive cyber operations to counter Russian threats, especially in the context of protecting against cyber attacks on critical infrastructure and interference in elections. There is information that the US considered the possibility of offensive cyber operations against Russian hackers in response to cyber attacks on American companies that were considered a threat to national security. That is, judging by this, the US still paid attention to cyber threats from Russia, although specific figures remain unknown.
The US has not officially confirmed direct support for Ukrainian hacker groups. However, the US has provided support to Ukraine in cyberspace in other ways. There is information that the US has provided assistance to Ukraine through joint cyber operations. It is known that American military hackers have carried out operations in support of Ukraine and to deter Russian cyber attacks. This was stated in June 2022 by the head of the US Cyber Command, General Paul Nakasone. According to him, a number of cyber operations of all types were carried out: offensive, defensive, informational. Details of these cyber attacks were not reported.
Additionally, the U.S. National Cyber Mission (CNMF) sent 43 specialists to Ukraine in 2023 to help counter Russian cyberattacks. These defense teams worked to identify common adversaries.
The United States also provided Ukraine with technical assistance and intelligence sharing in the field of cybersecurity. There may have been indirect assistance through private companies and partnership programs.
Thus, the US has provided support to Ukraine in cyberspace through joint operations and cooperation in the field of cybersecurity, but direct assistance to hacker groups has not been confirmed.
Reducing attention to Russian cyber threats could lead to several serious risks:
Recall, in March, the American media spread a message that the US had ordered the Cyber Command to stop planning cyber operations against Russia. The other day, the US media reported, citing a message from an unnamed official, that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had not canceled or postponed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets, and there was no order regarding this priority. Ukrainian white hat hacker Mykyta Knysh questions the existence of offensive US cyber operations against Russia.
