Russia denies it’s planning U.S. cyberattacks, but Biden urges caution

U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday told businesses to protect themselves against possible cyberattacks by Russia in response to western sactions.

The Kremlin on Tuesday rejected U.S. warnings that it may be preparing to conduct cyberattacks in response to western sanctions, and said it did not engage in “banditry”.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday told businesses to do more to protect themselves against possible cyberattacks by Russia, warning there was “evolving intelligence” that Moscow was exploring options on that front.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters: “The Russian Federation, unlike many Western countries, including the United States, does not engage in state-level banditry.”

Russia has previously rejected similar allegations, including accusations that it was responsible for hacks on Ukrainian banking and government websites in February.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby on Tuesday said the U.S. Department of Defense has not suffered any cyberattacks, adding that U.S. officials were open with American business leaders at Monday’s meeting about the likely risk to corporations.

“We haven’t seen anything affect our infrastructure or critical U.S government infrastructure,” he told MNSBC. “We wanted to make sure that leaders knew and were aware that the Russians would probably try this kind of tactic going forward.”

Important U.S. companies that provide critical infrastructure should improve their cyber defenses, but there was “no certainty” such an attack would occur, senior White House cybersecurity official Anne Neuberger said on Monday.

Russian Deputy Industry and Trade Minister Vasiliy Shpak suggested Russia create a division of cyber troops to combat increased threats, in which developers could hone their skills and demonstrate their patriotism.