Russia’s President took part in the annual expanded Board meeting of the Federal Security Service, presidential web page reported. Addressing the audience, he said, “I hope you will use every opportunity to achieve a vital goal – the protection of the legitimate rights and interests of entrepreneurs, as well as all citizens of Russia.”
The President specifically pointed out at cybersecurity challenges. “It is important to enhance the security of national information resources, primarily, by promptly countering cyberattacks against government bodies, state corporations, communications providers and large companies, and to ensure the failsafe operation of confidential communications systems. In the past three years coordinated cyberattacks, that is, attacks consisting of several linked actions, have become more frequent. Thus, while in 2014–2015 a little more than 1,500 cyberattacks were recorded a year, in 2016 their number reached 12,000, about 12,500 in 2017 and as many as 17,000 last year. In effect, these are well-planned large-scale operations that can deal a heavy blow at our national interests. We must be ready for the continuation of this cyber offensive against Russia and the growth of related threats. In this context, it is important to take prompt additional measures to protect critical information infrastructure and to develop a state system of detecting, warning, and eliminating the effects of computer attacks,” he noted.