A Look At The Russian - Ukraine Cyber War

Flickr user: Kecko

Ukraine Conflict: Hackers Take Sides In Virtual War -- BBC

Throughout the bitter violence of the Ukrainian conflict, another hidden war has been waged, involving several groups of computer hackers.

Little is beyond their reach. Official documents and private communications are made public, and websites blocked. They hijack CCTV cameras, electronic billboards and network printers.

The best known of the virtual warriors are the Ukrainian Cyber Troops, the Cyber Berkut and Anonymous International.

All three present themselves as independent activists, separate from other, government-sponsored groups.

Read more ....

My Comment: I actually expected this part of the conflict to be far more intense .... but it has been relegated to denial of service for some websites and/or temporarily hijacking a website to push your message or agenda. Where the conflict has been intense is the attempt by both sides to control the message from conventional news websites and outlets. And while Russia has been using the news media to push it's agenda on eastern Ukraine since Day One, Ukraine is now quickly catching up .... Ukraine forms 'ministry of truth' to regulate the media (The Guardian).

In my own case .... I have been asked a number of times on what are my sources on the Ukraine conflict. In brief .... my sources are from the main stream Western media, Russian and Ukraine news outlets, family, friends, and contacts. I do not have any contacts within the separatist movement, but I do have contacts in both the Ukraine and Russian governments who feed me information on a regular but "confidential" basis. But it is social media that is starting to play a bigger role to help me get a read on the situation .... they provide information that is usually from people on the ground within and/or near the points of conflict .... and their observations and opinions are almost all of the time unfiltered and blunt .... which is exactly what I like to see and read.