The recent incidents at the Russian embassy and the Russian ambassador’s embarrassing interview on RTE could encourage Russian hackers to launch a cyberattack on Ireland, a leading cybersecurity expert said.
Kevin O’Loughlin, chief executive of Nostra, said Russian hackers are setting out to cause damage to western countries rather than make money since Russia invaded Ukraine.
He said Ireland is seen as an easy target - and some Russia-based hackers may choose to target Ireland due to public displays of support for Ukraine here.
He said: “Cyber gangs are using all of their might and power to attack anything in the West.
“Ireland is in the West. The Russian Embassy challenges and the broadcast of the interview with the Russian Ambassador is helping to inflame (Russian) people’s opinions of Ireland.
“Ireland is a centre and headquarters for a lot of global organisations. As a profile of the nation, we are a relatively small country but a big global personality. It means we’re seen as an easy target.”
Mr O’Loughlin said hackers are setting out to cause damage and not to be paid ransom.
He said: “Historically, this was all about money. Like the HSE attack, the hackers encrypt all the data and charge the HSE a fee to get the data back.
“There is somewhat of a chance of recovering the data.
“What we’re now seeing in the market is that it’s about damage.
“They don’t look for ransom. They just wipe the data and it will never be recovered. It is a much more serious scenario.
“The profile and style of attack happening now is much more serious than before because it’s not monetary driven. It’s harder to recover from and that’s a big concern.”
Mr O’Loughlin said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has split hackers into warring factions.
The Conti gang, which was responsible for the HSE attack, has split into supporters and opposers of Russia while Anonymous, whose members call themselves hacktivists, has declared cyberwar on the Russian government.
He said everyone should be aware of the risk of a cyberattack as many come about due to human error.
He said: “The weakest link in the chain is people. An awful lot of hacks come in through human error.
“It’s an attack on an individual, like a new employee at an organisation who gets an email from who they think is the managing director asking them to do something.
“They’re targeted because they’re new and trying to impress. And they let someone inside the network.
“There are cyber attacks every day in Ireland at varying levels.”
Meanwhile, Dr Tom Clonan said Ireland could be targeted by Russian hackers as headquarters of technology and social media companies are based here.
Dr Clonan, who is a security analyst and a candidate for the Seanad bye-election, said Russian’s invasion of Ukraine sparked an information war.
He said: “Ireland holds 30% of all data in Europe. We have over 50 data centres around the country and Ireland is the digital link between the US and Europe.
“All the big multi-nationals are here and for that reason, we’re a big target.
“That’s how ordinary Russians may find out what’s happening in Ukraine.
“A big part of the war in Ukraine is an information war. Digital platforms are key to winning the information war.
“Ireland is home to most of those digital platforms so we’re a big target.
“We’re the only country in the EU that doesn’t have proper cyber defence.
“We’re the only country in Europe with no cyber defence.
“The role of the head of the National Cyber Security Centre is vacant. The Defence Forces’ cyber security experts are being lost because of poor pay and conditions.
“And gardai are extremely under-resourced. It’s not the fault of any of those people, it’s the lack of Government investment in this area.
“Those two things together put us right in the firing line.”
Dr Clonan said Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin have been successful in censoring ordinary Russians’ access to news and information to date.
He said: “Putin and the Kremlin have been successful at putting out false information about what’s happening in Ukraine.
“They describe the leadership as fascists who are holding Ukrainian people captive and Russian soldiers have gone in to liberate them.
“We know that’s not true in the West because we have free access to information.
“If the Russian people knew what is happening and knew the full truth, support for Putin and his inner circle could evaporate.
“The information war is in the cyber domain. We have been targeted before, like in the Wizard Spider attack last year. These people have no morals whatsoever.
“We really need to invest in our defences and our neutrality. If we don’t do that, we can’t say we’re neutral.”
Last week, the Central Bank of Ireland wrote to all banks and financial institutions in Ireland regarding cybersecurity.
It warned firms to be aware of the significantly increased cyber threat landscape resulting from Russia’s invasion into Ukraine and to remain on heightened alert for cyberattack.
