Is Russia exploring cyberattacks against U.S. in response to hacktivists?

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President Joe Biden warned today that a wave of new Russian cyberattacks against targets in the U.S. could be getting closer. This raises the question: Why now?

Are these attacks a response to the sanctions against Russia?

Mike Hamilton thinks it's likely to be the latter. He says it could be the hacking efforts of volunteers such as the Anonymous hacktivist group.

Hamilton, founder and CISO at security firm Critical Insight, and formerly the vice-chair for the DHS State, Local, Tribal and Territorial Government, said that part of this may be driven by the pretext that has been provided by an army of volunteers.

The Russian space agency, electric vehicle charging stations, broadcast television, andUnsecured printers are some of the things that the United States may retaliate against.

The Russian Government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks, according to a statement released by Biden today.

This has prompted Biden to reiterate previous warnings that Russia could conduct malicious cyber activity against the United States, including as a response to the unprecedented economic costs we have imposed on Russia alongside our allies and partners.

Biden said in the statement that it was part of Russia's playbook.

Russia may retaliate against the U.S. for its support of Ukraine and for its assault on its neighbor, according to the U.S. federal government.

Blaming the U.S.

Cyber experts have been suggesting for weeks that the U.S. could be held responsible for the cyberattacks that have been carried out against Russia.

It's difficult to determine who was behind the attack and where it came from, according to a previous email from Coalfire's vice president. The risk of cyberattacks from the Russians directed toward the U.S. and west increases.

With Biden's statement today, that likelihood seems to have gone up.

The White House announcement is starting to edge up on specific and credible threats, Hamilton said.

My administration will continue to use every tool to deter, disrupt, and respond to cyberattacks against critical infrastructure. The Federal Government can't defend against this threat on its own.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has been calling on businesses and government agencies to put shields up for more than a month.

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