How the Ukraine Conflict Affects Pakistan's Cybersecurity

Globally, cybercrime is a rising problem, and Pakistan confronts many of the same problems as the rest of the globe. Crimes against individuals and the government are increasing, and the effects of the Ukrainian War are still being felt in the cybersecurity environment.

Online security has only recently become a priority for Pakistani policy; the National Centre for Cyber Security was only established in 2018. Has this affected the nation's cyberattacks in any way? Is the ongoing conflict in Ukraine posing new problems for Pakistan and the rest of the world?

Here, we'll look into Pakistan-specific problems and put them in a broader context.

Pakistan's Cybercrime Landscape

The International Telecommunications Union recently ranked Pakistan's readiness for cybersecurity as 79th.

In fact, the Pakistani government did not approve the National Cyber Security Policy until July 2021. Pakistan aims to become more resilient to attacks and better prepared for them when they do occur as a result of the approach.

This doctrine also includes the option of using nuclear weapons. It accepts that an assault by enemies could occur both offline and online, necessitating this.

Regular residents are also being impacted as the government intensifies its reaction to the new global danger of cybercrime. Cybercrimes against Pakistanis increased by 83% in the three years from 2018 to 2020.

Online financial crimes were the most commonly reported offence, and in 2020, Facebook was the site where most scams were reported. Over 100,000 cybercrimes were reported in Pakistan by 2021. Small-scale internet attacks are clearly on the rise, but law enforcement also cites the fact that reporting online crimes is simpler as a factor in the rise in data.

These internet attacks also affect organisations and businesses. Attacks on the Federal Board of Revenue occurred in October 2021 and, more recently, in March 2022. In November 2021, an attack on the national bank resulted in the destruction of ATMs across the nation.

Cybercrime has an impact on Pakistani citizens' daily lives. There will be greater vulnerabilities and opportunities for attacks on Pakistan and its people as internet access grows and the government pushes for more digital banking.

How Ukraine's War Affects Pakistan's Cybersecurity

Does Pakistan's stance on Russia's invasion of Ukraine make it more vulnerable to attacks?

The country has declared that it will not support any one side in the conflict. For living in camps, we have paid a price. We are stepping very carefully because of this. We abstained because we didn't want to jeopardise our neutrality, according to Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the foreign minister of Pakistan, in March 2022.

Although it doesn't appear like either side of the war has yet targeted Pakistan online, there are bigger issues at play. Both the number of cyberattacks and the number of new viruses have increased significantly.

Currently, these weapons are concentrated on securing victories for either side in the battle, like the destruction of the Russian stock exchange in the early stages of the conflict. They can and will, however, find their way onto the black web and spread beyond the battlefield.

Software and hacks being created and perfected in the battle by both Russia and Ukraine are destined for the dark web. They will almost certainly be modified and deployed in strikes against numerous nations, including Pakistan. Despite how intimidating this may seem, a quick VPN download can provide an additional layer of defence against any online attacks.

Global Perspective on War and Cybersecurity

Pakistan is largely spared from the worst of the current cyber battle that is being fought. Russian cyberterrorists often target the USA, European countries, and other allies of Ukraine.

Russian hackers and internet extortionists have long called that country home. Nearly three-quarters of all payments made to hackers to recover data after an attack end up in Russia, according to a BBC analysis.

Since the conflict's inception in February 2022, Ukraine has been the target of ongoing attacks. Microsoft recorded 237 attacks on the nation in April from Russia and its allies, with 32% of the harmful attacks going toward the government infrastructure in Ukraine.

The chief of the British espionage organisation GCHQ claims that a more extensive, coordinated effort against nations supporting Ukraine hasn't materialised to the extent that was anticipated. At least for the time being, the attacks do appear to be restricted to the area of fighting.

Ukraine has been working hard to make it harder for the Russian government to operate online and to reveal the truth to the Russian people about the misinformation. For instance, RuTube, the Russian version of YouTube, was recently deactivated, and it appears that its source code was also removed.

Since the beginning of the conflict, the large hacker collective known as Anonymous has been striving to destabilise Russia. This is an international citizen project that demonstrates the capability of hackers and programmers to attack institutions and the government.