fbpx
Connect with us
Apply Now

Tech + Startups

Are We Already Experiencing a Cyber War?

cyber war

In 2022, Ukraine has already experienced new malware designed to erase data right before they were invaded by Russian troops. In the first 10 weeks of this year, Ukraine was attacked with almost 200 cyberattacks with hackers first disabling around 70 government websites in Ukraine. The FBI ultimately had to ask U.S. companies to alert them to “any increased (cyber)activity against Ukraine or U.S. critical infrastructure” and activate a “shields up” alert.  

 

Explaining the Increase in Cyberattacks

 

In March, the world experienced more than 6 billion cyberattacks worldwide in a single 24-hour period. Russia and Ukraine were the heaviest hit, although the war with Ukraine is likely serving as a live testing ground for Russia’s next generation of cyber weapons. One of the main reasons Russia is using Ukraine as a testing ground is possibly due to the country’s tech infrastructure being fairly similar to Western Europe and the U.S. but with limited resources for counter-attacks. 

 

The number of cyberattacks have significantly increased over time. For example, suspected Russian hackers disconnected electricity for more than 200,000 customers in western Ukraine. This year, the E.U. and U.S. offered cyber defense support to Ukraine, but cyberattacks are predicted to not stay within the country’s borders. Another approach to counter-attacks involves pro-Ukraine hackers targeting websites in Russia to induce chaos and panic. 

 

The process usually involves scanning sections of the internet for vulnerable devices and then having malware attack automatically where it’s likely to cause the most damage. These attacks are typically predicted to bring collateral damage across borders. In recent years, about half of U.S. tech execs are admitting state-sponsored cyber warfare is one of their biggest fears with more than 30% of U.S. tech execs stating that we should prioritize establishing a national cybersecurity protocol. 

 

If a Serious Cyber War Breaks Out, What Would it Look Like? 

 

These days both our network and physical infrastructure security are at greater risk of breaches and hacks. The pandemic has only increased the potential for damage from cyberthreats due to the amount of information now being stored in the cloud and services being provided through digital means. Remote work has also become more common with people using home networks and personal devices that are not tightly secured. 

 

There are a few differences between a cyberattack and a cyber war. Usually, cyberattacks have been less critical, probably due to them being tests for new cyberweapons. However, cyberattacks are still capable of shutting down electrical grids, causing various power infrastructures to explode or self-destruct, and destroy technology, including steel mills, gas pipelines, and centrifuges. A serious attack could affect many targets at once, magnifying the destruction. 

 

On the other hand, a cyber war has the potential to have an impact similar to that of a natural disaster. For example, getting rid of a power grid could result in similar conditions to the 2021 Texas Freeze. This can involve widespread damage caused by frozen and burst pipes, loss of electricity, shortage of food, less access to water, and more than 200 deaths. In the U.S. only 19% of Americans are completely confident the government can protect its citizens from cyber warfare. 

 

In Summary

 

Many people believe the U.S. is the most secure for cyber war attacks. Nonetheless, most of potential cyberattacks are distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, which aim to make a resource unusable by the masses. Americans in particular are worried about losing access to finances, cell service, and running water. Thus, Americans have already started to take action to protect themselves from cyber warfare, which includes updating all software on their computers, backing up important documents, and having cash reserves. 

 

It’s more applicable than ever to prepare yourself for a possible war.

Continue Reading


Copyright © 2022 Disrupt ™ Magazine is a Minority Owned Privately Held Company - Disrupt ™ was founder by Puerto Rican serial entrepreneur and philanthropist Tony Delgado who is on a mission to transform Latin America using the power of education and entrepreneurship.

Disrupt ™ Magazine
151 Calle San Francisco
Suite 200
San Juan, Puerto Rico, 00901

Opinions expressed by Disrupt Contributors are their own. Disrupt Magazine invites voices from many diverse walks of life to share their perspectives on our contributor platform. We are big believers in freedom of speech and while we do enforce our community guidelines, we do not actively censor stories on our platform because we want to give our contributors the freedom to express their opinions. Articles are not commissioned by our editorial team, and opinions expressed by our community contributors do not reflect the opinions of Disrupt or its employees.
We are committed to fighting the spread of misinformation online so if you feel an article on our platform goes against our community guidelines or contains false information, we do encourage you to report it. We need your help to fight the spread of misinformation. For more information please visit our Contributor Guidelines available here.


Disrupt ™ is the voice of latino entrepreneurs around the world. We are part of a movement to increase diversity in the technology industry and we are focused on using entrepreneurship to grow new economies in underserved communities both here in Puerto Rico and throughout Latin America. We enable millennials to become what they want to become in life by learning new skills and leveraging the power of the digital economy. We are living proof that all you need to succeed in this new economy is a landing page and a dream. Disrupt tells the stories of the world top entrepreneurs, developers, creators, and digital marketers and help empower them to teach others the skills they used to grow their careers, chase their passions and create financial freedom for themselves, their families, and their lives, all while living out their true purpose. We recognize the fact that most young people are opting to skip college in exchange for entrepreneurship and real-life experience. Disrupt Magazine was designed to give the world a taste of that.