Kim Min-seok
The author is an editorial writer and senior researcher at the Institute for Military and Security Affairs at the JoongAng Ilbo.“Be afraid and wait for the worst!” a text read when Ukrainian government websites and those of other institutions were hacked before Russia attacked the neighbor on Feb. 24. The warning was posted on Jan. 14. The digital offensive stoked terror across Ukraine before Russia carried out the invasion. It was a type of psychological warfare designed to unsettle and demoralize Ukrainians going into a war with a global power like Russia.
Russia stole personal information of Ukrainian government officials through hacking to threaten them with e-mails. The hackers then brought down the websites of government offices and institutions to prevent them from warning the people about an imminent invasion.
Ten months into the war, Ukraine has been holding up with arms and defense resource assistance from the United States and other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In the meantime, Russia under West-led sanctions has been struggling amid shortages, such as artillery. Russia is currently bombarding energy infrastructure in Ukraine to cause greater pain for civilians in winter.
Cyber warfare has become a crucial component in the Russia-Ukraine war. We have never seen such a methodical application of cyber warfare.
The war on cyberspace puts South Korea on alert in its confrontation with North Korea, a country with the world’s second or third best cyber war capabilities. As South Korea is arguably the world’s most connected society, heavily relying on internet and IT infrastructure, the country could suffer colossal damage if it does not fully ready itself against cyberattacks from North Korea.
Russia planned a three-staged hybrid war with Ukraine, starting with cyberattacks and a pr ..
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