The conflict between Russia and Ukraine puts neighbouring EU countries at risk of disruption from cyberattacks and the spread of disinformation, Politico has reported.
“The Baltic states, for Russia, are the easiest way to put pressure on the EU and NATO […]. This is the place where we have to pay careful attention,” said Bart Groothuis, member of the European Parliament and former cybersecurity official at the Dutch Ministry of Defence.
Groothuis is leading a delegation of members of the European Parliament’s subcommittee on defence and security, visiting Estonia and Lithuania this week.
The visit comes following the announcement that the Lithuanian-led EU Cyber Rapid Response Team was activated on Tuesday to support Ukraine.
In response to Ukraine’s request, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Estonia, Romania and Croatia “are activating Cyber Rapid Response Team to help” Ukrainian institutions “to cope with growing cyber threats”, Lithuanian Deputy Defence Minister Margiris Abukevičius said on Twitter.
According to Politico, the threat of cyberattacks on European soil is two-fold. First, attacks launched on Ukrainian networks could spread to European networks. Second, Russia could choose to launch direct attacks on European targets through its intelligence services or cybercriminal groups to disrupt the West’s response to the Ukraine crisis.
In recent weeks, the European national cybersecurity agencies and officials have repeatedly warned the private and public sectors to prepare for possible cyberattacks at home.
The threat of major cyberattacks increased further on Tuesday as the West responded with sanctions to Russia’s decision to recognise two separatist republics in Ukraine as independent and deploy troops there.
Russian President Vladimir Putin “may decide to launch attacks against the West in the cyber realm […]. He sees it as a kind of low-hanging fruit to respond to the sanctions, for example, or respond to some Western behaviour he doesn't like,” Jaak Tarien, director at Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) in Tallinn, told Politico.
Last week, the Central Bank of Lithuania warned the country’s banks to prepare for possible power cuts and cyberattacks amid Ukraine tensions, while the national cyber security centre raised the cyber security alarm.
“We definitely see how, as the general state of security deteriorates, the likelihood of cyber activities increases. We’re working on a higher alert level,” Abukevičius said.
Read more: Agency warns of raised cyber security alert in Lithuania, no Ukraine-related incidents yet
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