A free-for-all but no crippling cyberattacks in Ukraine war

A Joint Cybersecurity Advisory published by the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency about destructive malware that is targeting organisations in Ukraine is photographed on Feb 28, 2022. — AP

RICHMOND, Virginia: Russia has some of the best hackers in the world, but in the early days of the war in Ukraine, its ability to create mayhem through malware hasn’t had much of a noticeable impact.

Instead, it’s Ukraine that’s marshalled sympathetic volunteer hackers in an unprecedented collective global effort to make the Kremlin pay for making war on its neighbour. It’s a kind of cyber free-for-all that experts say risks escalating a moment already fraught with extraordinary danger after Russian President Vladimir Putin put his nuclear forces on alert.