The UK has joined international partners to share updated mitigation advice against Russian state-sponsored and criminal cyber threats.

The advisory is published jointly by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) – a part of GCHQ – alongside agencies in the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, as well as the UK’s National Crime Agency. It provides technical details on the threat to critical infrastructure from Russian state-sponsored and cyber criminals.

It complements recent NCSC advice on actions to take when the cyber threat is heightened, and aims to further improve the resilience of organisations in the event of heightened malicious cyber activity.
Several immediate actions for all organisations to take to protect their networks are set out in the advisory, which include:

• prioritising the patching of known exploited vulnerabilities
• enforcing multi-factor authentication (MFA)
• monitoring remote desktop protocol (RDP) and
• providing end-user awareness and training

Lindy Cameron, NCSC CEO, said:

“In this period of heightened cyber threat, it has never been more important to plan and invest in longer-lasting security measures.

“It is vital that all organisations accelerate plans to raise their overall cyber resilience, particularly those defending our most critical assets.

“The NCSC continues to collaborate with our international and law enforcement partners to provide organisations with timely actionable advice to give them the best chance of preventing cyber attacks, wherever they come from.”

Lead Minister for Cyber Security and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Rt Hon Steve Barclay MP, said:

“The global cyber threat is clear and growing in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While businesses have long recognised the importance of cyber security, the urgency is now much more visible. As the Russian economy retracts under the weight of sanctions, more cybercriminals are looking to the West and the UK. 

“We are collaborating with the cybersecurity authorities in the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, to ensure organisations in the UK and across the world protect themselves and bolster our defences. Cyber attacks recognise no physical or geographical boundary and it has never been more important to plan and invest in cyber resilience.

“Businesses should visit the NCSC website for guidance on how best to protect themselves.”

The advisory also includes details on Russian-aligned cyber criminal groups, some of which have recently pledged support for the Russian state and have threatened to conduct malicious operations in retaliation against countries providing support to Ukraine.

The full advisory is available to read here.