KUBINKA, Moscow region. Aug 17 (Interfax) - The increase in personal data leaks stemming from hacking attacks is linked to the blocking of U.S. social networks in Russia, Andrei Lipov, head of Russia's telecoms watchdog Roskomnadzor, said.
"Personal data theft increased dramatically after we blocked social networks belonging to Americans. It can clearly be seen. It's quite easy to explain it, because as soon as we blocked them we deprived the Americans of access and opportunities [to conduct] behavioral analysis of our citizens," Lipov said at a roundtable meeting titled "The digital transformation of society and its impact on national security and socio-economic development" held on Thursday at the Army 2023 forum.
"That is, what they had close to hand moved further away from them, so they started attacking our information systems [and] our databases head-on, essentially getting food for their analytical systems," he said.
"Therefore, the surge in attacks on personal data was clearly present last year," he said.
"The respected owners of our information systems have naturally started protecting themselves, and so this is now decreasing more or less, but the level is still quite high, and the threat remains," Lipov said.
Moscow's Tverskoi District Court recognized the U.S. company Meta Platforms Inc. as an extremist organization and banned its operation on Russian territory, agreeing with the Russian Prosecutor General's Office's criminal case, on March 21, 2022. Prior to this, the social networks Facebook and Instagram were banned in Russia. Facebook was blocked for censorship of Russian media, granting the Prosecutor General's Office's request, on March 4, and Instagram was blocked on March 14.
Amid sanctions and the special military operation, Russia has faced cyberattacks on server telecommunications software programs, information attacks "that normally follow various DDoS attacks," and also "attacks on personal data," Lipov said.
"Attacks on personal data probably have the most serious consequences right now, as these data are tied to individuals, and they can be used against people for quite a long time, having fallen into the wrong hands. How are they used today? This is obvious; [it involves] manipulation of people and eventually attempts to manipulate society. It may also involve recruiting people and consequently ordering [that they carry out] illegal actions which pose a danger to the public offline," Lipov said.
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