Number of Cyberattacks Against Russia Increased by 80% in 2022: Senior Diplomat

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of cyberattacks against Russia increased by 80% this year against the backdrop of Moscow's special operation, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov said in an interview with Sputnik.

"Against the backdrop of the special military operation, our country is faced with unprecedented external aggression in the information space. In 2022, the number of cyberattacks against Russia increased by 80%," Syromolotov said.

If last year financial institutions were the main target of attackers, this year, the main blow was taken by the public sector, including critical information infrastructure facilities and socially significant institutions, the diplomat added.

At the same time, the deputy minister also noted that the Russian IT infrastructure had been able to counter cyberattacks due to a number of measures the government has taken over the past year.

"As of today, the Russian IT infrastructure allows [us] to quite effectively counter cyberattacks. In 2022, over 25,000 cyberattacks on state web resources and 1,200 cyberattacks on critical infrastructure have been successfully neutralized," the diplomat stated.

According to Syromolotov, Russia's phase-out of cybersecurity tools made in unfriendly countries and establishment of IT security departments in key state institutions are some of the factors that have led to enhanced cybersecurity in the country.