Threat situation “greater than ever”
Russian cyber attacks are increasing – BSI alarmed
07/06/2023 10:24 am
As a European power and supporter of Ukraine, Germany is an attractive target for Russian hackers. But not only from there, but also from China and Iran, the BSI counts more virtual attacks. Interior Minister Faeser wants the BKA to penetrate foreign servers.
The new head of the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), Claudia Plattner, warns of a growing danger from Russian cyber attacks. “The number of attacks from Russia is increasing,” Plattner told the Süddeutsche Zeitung. Overall, the threat situation in the network is “bigger than ever”. Germany, as a European power and supporter of Ukraine, is an “attractive target” for hacker groups controlled by Moscow.
“The goals are: espionage, destabilization and influence,” said Plattner, who took office on July 1. An increase in the number of attacks can also be observed from China and Iran.
The German security authorities are concerned that pro-Russian activists, cybercriminals and hacker groups from the Russian secret services are joining forces to attack Western systems, the report said. Recently, websites of authorities and other important institutions have been paralyzed again and again. Many experts regard the fact that 5,800 wind turbines in Germany failed last spring as a result of a suspected Russian hacker attack as collateral damage of a suspected Russian attack on a satellite network as a warning shot.
BKA should be allowed to “hack back”.
BSI boss Plattner also called for the critical infrastructure in Germany in particular to be better protected. Opportunities are needed to “stop and fend off” attacks, she told the newspaper. “Just holding your hands up is not enough.”
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser wants to give the Federal Criminal Police Office more powers: In the event of a hacker attack, the BKA should be allowed to “actively” fend off – i.e. possibly penetrate servers abroad and render them incapable of acting. So far this is not possible. Details of the plans are not yet known. The traffic light parties had recently confirmed in the new national security strategy that they fundamentally reject so-called hackbacks.
Experts warn of the risks of interfering with third-party systems, for example because they consider the consequences to be uncertain. BSI boss Plattner defended the plans: “That doesn’t always mean switching off a server in another country,” she told the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. Defense can also mean making a website no longer accessible.
Union in favor, Greens and FDP critical
The Greens and FDP are skeptical about the plans. The Greens member of the Bundestag Konstantin von Notz told the newspaper that the added value in terms of security policy had to be critically examined. “It is clear that we will only introduce powers that are proportionate and constitutional.”
Reinhard Brandl, digital policy spokesman for the Union faction, believes that further defensive options are urgently needed and criticized the coalition’s disagreement. Responsibilities would already be distributed on a “hypothetical basis”. A “Potemkin village” is being built here, “which will not defend us in an emergency.”