Biden was presented with some cyberattack possibilities

Biden was presented with some cyberattack possibilities

Washington, 25.2.2022

From an NBC – report it appears that U.S. President Biden was presented with a whole range of options for cyberattacks aimed at disrupting Russia’s military operations in Ukraine. A final decision has not yet been made, it said.

The report said: that U.S. intelligence officials and military cyber warriors had proposed the use of American cyber weapons on a scale never before considered . The following examples were cited:

► Disrupting Internet connectivity throughout Russia.

►Shutdown of electrical power supply.

►Manipulation of railroad switches to impede Russia’s ability to supply its armed forces.

While some officials discussed the legal requirements under which the attacks could take place, a deep divide between supporters and opponents of the use of cyberweapons was revealed. The intention is not to destroy the networks but only to disrupt them, which is why they are not classified as an act of war. This also applies to the power cuts and the manipulation of railroad switches. They would only cause supply problems for the Russian armed forces.

Opponents warned that any use of cyberweapons by the United States would be a turning point in the war between the Russians and the Ukrainians. They said that previous U.S. cyber operations had been limited to intelligence gathering or had been targeted attacks as part of counterterrorism efforts. Probably the most famous case was the Stuxnet attack, on Iran’s nuclear program. One official is quoted as saying, „Anything we can do to them, they can do to us.“

According to NBC, the White House did not initially respond to a request for comment. After releasing the story, Emily Horne, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, emphasized in a statement, „This report is completely inaccurate and in no way reflects what is actually being discussed.“