Microsoft Helping Ukraine Government Against Mounting Russia Cyberattacks

Microsoft is helping the Ukraine government protect against cyberattacks from Russia, including the identification of a new malware package.

Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president and vice chair, outlined the tech giant’s response to the Ukraine crisis in a blog. The Ukraine government, as well as organizations and individuals there, are Microsoft customers.

Microsoft wouldn’t say whether it has partners in Ukraine or how they are being impacted by the crisis.

Microsoft’s Brad Smith

“All of us who work at Microsoft are following closely the tragic, unlawful and unjustified invasion of Ukraine,” Smith said. “This has become both a kinetic and digital war, with horrifying images from across Ukraine as well as less visible cyberattacks on computer networks and internet-based disinformation campaigns.”

Important to Work Together

Smith said in times like this, it’s “especially important for us to work in consultation with those in government.”

“And, in this instance, our efforts have involved constant and close coordination with the Ukrainian government, as well as with the European Union, European nations, the U.S. government, NATO and the United Nations,” he said.

Several hours before the launch of missiles or movement of tanks on Feb. 24, Microsoft’s Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) detected a new round of offensive and destructive cyberattacks directed against Ukraine’s digital infrastructure.

“We immediately advised the Ukrainian government about the situation, including our identification of the use of a new malware package (which we denominated FoxBlade), and provided technical advice on steps to prevent the malware’s success,” Smith said.

Microsoft then wrote and added signatures to its Defender anti-malware to detect this new exploit .

“In recent days, we have provided threat intelligence and defensive suggestions to Ukrainian officials regarding attacks on a range of targets, including Ukrainian military institutions and manufacturers, and several other Ukrainian government agencies,” Smith said. “This work is ongoing.”

Scroll through our slideshow above for more from Microsoft and more cybersecurity news from the Ukraine-Russia crisis.