Security News > 2022 > March > Expect 'long tail of cyber retaliation' from Russia for sanctions, says ExtraHop CEO

The US and its NATO allies should expect a "Long tail of retaliation," in the form of cyberattacks, for the sanctions imposed on Russia, says cloud security shop ExtraHop's CEO Patrick Dennis.

CISA's Shields Up alert about the Russian invasion of Ukraine potentially spilling over into cyber-offensives against the US should have served as a wake-up call to organizations to improve their security posture, Dennis said in an interview with The Register.

"Once Russia decided to go kinetic, cyber is not the thing that's going to necessarily fall to the top of the pile," Dennis said, adding that tanks and missiles are more effective in mass destruction.

While Russian cyberattacks to this point have largely targeted Ukrainian government agencies and organizations, as the US and NATO allies ramp up sanctions and a growing number of private companies pull out of Russia, Dennis believes the West will see a growing cyber retaliation.

He pointed to the US ban on Russian energy imports, the partial SWIFT sanctions against Russian banks, and a slew of private companies from McDonald's to Microsoft stopping or at least limiting their business in Russia.

"And so I think it's reasonable to expect a proportional response to this. It's hard to see a future where Russia and Russian sympathizers don't retaliate."

News URL

https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2022/03/31/extrahop_russian_sanctions/