Cyber Conflict Investigation Essay
Overview
Cyber-conflicts have already been experienced across the world and are likely to play a major factor in disputes between nations in the future as well. Much can be learned about the seriousness of cyber-conflicts by investigating recent cyber-attacks performed by or against a nation.
For this discussion, use the internet to search for information regarding attacks or incidents that occurred as part of a cyber-conflict. You may find information in news articles, blog posts, press releases, or other sites that provide specifics about network attacks or international relations.
Choose a particular incident/attack to investigate and detail in the main discussion.
Do your best to find a unique incident or attack – If you find an attack in the first couple of links after searching, it might already be covered in the discussion!
Instructions for Main Post
You should investigate the following items to include in your main discussion post:
- The organization or nation that was targeted
- The organization or nation that carried out the attack or caused the incident
- If the attack/incident was associated with a traditional conflict
- The type of attack or incident (malware, social engineering/information, network, etc.) and how it relates to previously covered cybersecurity topics
- Consequences of the attack – in cyberspace or the “real world”
- Whether or not non-governmental organizations were or could have been impacted by this or a similar attack
- Links to resources used to investigate the incident/attack.
Canada, the U.S., and the U.K. alleged Russian Cyber-attacks on Covid-19 Vaccine Trials
The Russian cyberspies perpetrated this cyber-attack. The incident targeted to steal coronavirus vaccine research and trials from three nations, the United States of America, the U.K., and Canada (Nakashima, Booth, & Coletta, 2020). The Russian intelligence service hackers belonged to the APT29 unit, whose long history of targeting diplomatic, governmental, healthcare, think tanks, and energy organizations for intelligence gain is known and considered a major threat.
Although Russia denied the allegations, the intention was clear. The attack is a valid example of traditional conflict since the desire for global prestige drove Russia. Compared to the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., Russia has a scarcity of scientific resources to develop the vaccine, and attacking the vaccine trials for these three nations was clear that it sought to injure, neutralize, or eliminate them in the race to find and develop the vaccine (Cohen, McGee, & Marquardt, 2020).
The Russian intelligence services attack on Covid-19 trials by these three nations was socially engineered to gain access to sensitive information. The Russian hackers wanted to trick Canada, the U.S., or the U.K. to provide confidential information about the Covid-19 vaccine development and trials. In relation to cyber-security topics, this was a phishing attack (Nakashima, Booth, & Coletta, 2020).
This Russian cyber-attack was associated with various consequences. The attacks hindered response efforts to Covid-19 at a time when medical researchers and healthcare experts require every available resource to help fight the pandemic. Another consequence was security breach to Canadian, U.K., and the U.S. organizations working on Covid-19 related research. Also, the attack compromised the Covid-19 research and trials in both governmental and non-governmental healthcare organizations across the three nations.
References
- Cohen, Z., McGee, L., & Marquardt, A. (2020, July 17). U.K., U.S. and Canada allege Russian cyberattacks on Covid-19 research centers. Retrieved from CNN Politics: https://edition.cnn.com/2020/07/16/politics/russia-cyberattack-covid-vaccine-research/index.html
- Nakashima, E., Booth, W., & Coletta, A. (2020, July 17). U.S., Britain and Canada say Russian cyberspies are trying to steal coronavirus vaccine research. Retrieved from The Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/uk-us-and-canada-report-russian-cyberspies-may-be-trying-to-steal-vaccine-research/2020/07/16/d7c0dbd6-c765-11ea-a825-8722004e4150_story.html