Detail

Immediately after the attack, speculations arose that other mobile operators could also be victims of a similar cyber attack. Users also noticed that Vodafone and Lifecell applications were not working. However, both companies explained this as a serious load on the system due to the sudden influx of new customers. They did not observe any interruptions in communications or the internet.

If you had asked me yesterday, I would have said that the Ukrainian telecom sector is one of the most protected. And what happened means that those who are protected are not. From my perspective, any critical infrastructure that is significantly dependent on modern IT technologies is vulnerable.
– says Oleksandr Komarov.

The director notes that the SBU is currently investigating the hackers’ method of breaking into the system (whether it is an internal vulnerability, social engineering, or some other way). According to that, No matter how protected the “environment” is, no matter how protected against external attacks, they are all vulnerable to some of the approaches used by hackers.

What is social engineering?

This is a hacking method that does not require any technical intervention into the victim’s system. Instead, the criminal applies an individual approach to a specific person to get into software complexes due to his carelessness. For example, when you receive a message from a supposedly familiar contact asking for money. In general, this method is characterized by manipulation of emotions, abuse of human habits, carelessness, fears and trust. The ultimate goal of this approach is to force the victim to give up what he wants: his account password, information about other people with access to the desired systems, or the same money.

• Let us remind you that yesterday, that is, on December 12, 2023, hackers carried out a cyber attack on Kyivstar’s systems, depriving some Ukrainians of communication and the internet.
• As the company later stated, criminals attempted to destroy as much of the infrastructure as possible.
• As of the morning of December 13, it was possible to reactivate some of the landline services. However, mobile networks are still unavailable.