Daily cyber-threats are the new normal in Finland, security organisations said on Friday.
Companies in Finland are increasingly the target of cyber-attacks, Finnish authorities said on Friday.
Firms are reporting an uptick in cyber-attacks, the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) and the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service (Supo) said in a joint press conference.
But despite the greater frequency of corporate cyber-attacks, the agencies said an event that could paralyse systems in Finland was highly unlikely.
Supo Chief Antti Pelttari told reporters that Russia is increasingly channelling its intelligence gathering efforts into the virtual realm. Supo has said(siirryt toiseen palveluun) Russian cyber-espionage targeting Finland exceeded previous levels by the second half of 2022. Russia is seeking to use cyber-espionage to make up for the shortfall in human intelligence, according to the security police.
“The falling number of intelligence officers and restrictions on travel across the Russian border have significantly undermined operating conditions for Russian human intelligence in Finland. Operations under diplomatic cover have been the main instrument of Russian intelligence abroad,” Supo said in a statement last month.
More cross-agency cooperation
Traficom and Supo said they were increasingly working together in the face of heightened cyber-threats.
“Every day Finland is targeted by a range of cyber-threats—from denial-of-service attacks to data breaches and attempts to spread malware,” explained Kirsi Karlamaa, director general of Traficom, noting that these threats are a permanent fixture by now.
Firms including Wärtsilä, Uponor and the Finnish News Agency STT have come under attack, as have government agencies, including some related to critical infrastructure.
Traficom and Supo also said that Finland was seeing more hacktivism—that is—groups rallying around specific societal issues.
Ransomware attacks are also on the rise now compared to the past two years, the agencies said.
Source: YLE
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