U.S. and Russia Meet on Cybersecurity
- By Sydny Shepard
- Apr 18, 2016
Senior cybersecurity officials from the U.S. and Russia are holding meetings this week on cybersecurity, renewing efforts to prevent the countries from mistakenly entering into a cyber war, U.S. officials said.
The meetings, which will take place in Geneva, include officials from the White House, State Departments and FBI. The officials hope to review the cybersecurity agreement that was signed by the two countries in 2013.
The meetings are a result of the cyber attack that has crippled parts of the Ukrainian power grid in December, a breach that U.S. investigators concluded to be a first-of-its-kind confirmed cyber attack on civilian infrastructure. U.S. officials believe the Russians were behind the attack, although they have not officially attributed the attack to Russia.
Because it is hard to pinpoint the origins of a cyber attack, the fear is that a cyber attack appearing to come from the other’s territory could mistakenly lead to a real confrontation between the two countries.
The officials stress that the meetings are nothing more than reviewing the plans already put in place to build the relationships between the two countries. The U.S. made sure to include confidence-building measures into the 2013 plan, like the establishment of a hotline to allow U.S. and Russian officials to talk to each other during a cybersecurity crisis.
About the Author
Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.