Russia has been a key player in cyberattacks over the last two decades with hacking collectives making waves through ransomware, spyware and data theft. According to Forbes earlier this month, 60% of cyberattacks were linked to state actors affiliated with Russia. If Russia wants to fight using cybertechnology they certainly have the means, workforce and intelligence.
The ASIO chief, Mike Burgess, stood up in Canberra last week at ASIO headquarters and spoke of a thwarted attempt at election interference, calling out a scam of a foreign entity (that he would not name) to insert unknowing election candidates to campaign in the upcoming federal election. And then, choose the electoral staff for that candidate with a view to “secretly shaping the jurisdiction’s political scene to benefit the foreign power”.