Is Russia A Hacking Superpower?

Moscow Times: How Russia Became a Hacking Superpower

Moscow has finally got the geopolitical respect it demanded for years, but only after spooking Washington.

Since the beginning of his first presidency, Vladimir Putin has made it a national priority to convince the West, and particularly the United States, to take Moscow seriously. This goal is largely to blame for the last decade of Russian foreign policy, which has grown more assertive, and militarized. For the longest time, Russia seemed incapable of breaking through Americans’ sense of invulnerability.

When Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, the Kremlin’s boldest aggressive trends were on full display, but Russia remained a distant concern for most people in the U.S. Even Washington refused to view Russian intransigence as a direct threat to American national security. Yes, the Kremlin was creating problems for allies in Europe, went conventional thinking, but the United States was safe.

It was only this year that Vladimir Putin finally captured the American mind, and he owes the feat not to flashy images of Russian missiles and tanks parading through Red Square, but to the quiet actions of people armed with computers.

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WNU Editor: My cousin's son works in cyber-security for an Australian bank in Ukraine .... he (as you can imagine) is always busy. In my own case .... I have been involved in numerous web projects since the mid 1990s .... and over the years I met and contracted out many Russian programmers to do some work. They were cheap. Incredibly fast in delivering a project. And I had zero problems in getting any technical issues resolved ASAP. The only other place where I have met the same calibre of programmer is in Silicon Valley .... but they cost 5x more. That is why I would not be surprised if Russia is producing top quality hackers who are doing it for fun and/or for profit. The education and expertise is definitely there .... and if someone wants to pay these people to do harm .... well .... I am sure some of them will take on this type work. And if it is for Mother Russia .... doubly so.

Update: Moscow Times is a dissident newspaper, not a Russian government run news website.