DDoS Attacks on UK Firms Surge During Ukraine War

The quantity of DDoS attacks from UK economic establishments surged in the course of the initially couple months of the Ukraine war, in accordance to new Freedom of Information (FoI) data received from the marketplace regulator.

The Economic Carry out Authority (FCA) uncovered to Picus Security that there have been 14 DDoS attack so far in 2022, vs . just five in the full of 2021.

More tellingly, there had been no DDoS tries on UK finance corporations at all this 12 months till March, when 4 struck. June was the most important thirty day period in the 1st fifty percent of the year, with 5 attacks recorded.

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Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Offered the finance sector’s critical part as critical countrywide infrastructure, Picus Security thinks these attacks have been the final result of point out-sponsored and hacktivist functions. A documented boost in DDoS-for-retain the services of internet sites in the very same time period of time might have helped the latter, the vendor claimed.

Having said that, the surge in attacks could also partly be discussed by ransomware actors working with DDoS as a tertiary extortion tactic, Picus Security claimed.

Interestingly, the increase in DDoS transpired even as in general attacks fell yr-on-yr. There were being 55 reviews of “material” cyber incidents in the 1st fifty percent of 2022, down 25% from the 73 noted in H1 2021.

The quantity of these incidents in the to start with six months of 2022 involving malware and phishing reduced 75% and 50% respectively, versus the very same interval in 2021.

Substance incidents are outlined by the FCA as those that result in substantial loss of data or manage of IT devices, effects a significant amount of victims, and/or outcome in unauthorized accessibility and malware deployment.

“UK money establishments are in the crossfire of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and have come to be a immediate focus on for nation-state attackers and hacktivists in search of to disrupt Ukraine’s allies,” claimed Picus Security co-founder, Suleyman Ozarslan.

“While it’s encouraging that fiscal firms noted less cyber incidents in the 1st 50 percent of 2022 than they did throughout the equivalent interval in 2021 there is no time for complacency. As threats evolve, financial institutions should carry on to proactively harden their defenses. This consists of validating that security controls and procedures deliver defense versus the latest risks.”