In today’s computer age, it’s likely that the first shots of any war won’t happen on the battlefield but will come from someone sitting behind a keyboard and monitor. For the United States, the hacking threats posed by countries like North Korea, Russia, and China are very real. These nations have already engaged in targeted campaigns against America, its allies, and against the very idea of democracy itself.
Inside these countries are hundreds, if not thousands, of hacker groups with separate interests and abilities. However, where things can get perilous is that in these three nations, there is a better than good chance at least some of the larger and more dangerous hacking groups are not just promoting national interests but doing so at the direction and with the support of their governments.
Russia
Fancy Bear
Among the biggest and best-known groups operating inside Russia is known as Fancy Bear. This cyber-espionage group was identified in 2018 by the United States at “GRU Unit 26125.” This number relates to the specialized military unit number for the Russian Army, which all but verifies this group is acting on behalf of the Russian government.
Among its most notable attacks includes a six-month-long attack on the German parliament that began on December 14, 2015, which paralyzed the IT infrastructure during this time. The only way to resolve the attack was to take the German parliament offline for several days. The group has also attacked the White House email system, Ukrainian artillery, Windows, and the Democratic National Committee.
Sandworm
In April 2024, a group known as Sandworm, again with close ties to the Russian government, acted in support of the country’s war and invasion of Ukraine. As a result, this group has begun testing attacking US infrastructure and, in April 2024, cyber attacked a Texas water facility, causing a tank to overflow.
This attack increased concerns about vulnerabilities inside sensitive industrial equipment around the US, making it a prime target for bad state actors. United States officials have raised concerns that 150,000 public water systems in the US don’t have the money or people to protect their systems from attacks.
North Korea
Lazarus Group
Among the most infamous North Korean hacking groups, the Lazarus Group is alleged to be run by the government of North Korea. The group is considered an “Advanced Persistent Threat” due to the nature of its methods. The group’s first big attack occurred against South Korea in 2013, when it called for “Ten Days of Rain,” targeting South Korean critical infrastructure, media, and financial interests with DDOS attacks.
The group’s most public attack occurred in late 2014 when it infiltrated Sony Pictures’ systems. In one of the most discussed hacking events in history, the group accessed and released scripts for unreleased films, scripts for films currently being shot, Sony’s plans for future films as well as the executive salaries of those leading Sony pictures, as well as the personal info of the company’s 4,000 employees.
China
Double Dragon
One of the biggest hacking groups in China, Double Dragon, is classified as an “Advanced Persistent Threat” by the US Department of Justice. Widely believed to be acting on behalf of the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS), the group has attacked critical infrastructure in telecommunications, healthcare, and technology interests.
The group has also attacked the video game industry for financial gain. This includes but is not limited to generating virtual game currency and selling it to buyers to create additional funding for its activities. These additional funds will unsurprisingly go toward larger-scale attacks.
Flax Typhoon
A group widely identified by the United States, Flax Typhoon poses a significant threat to national interests as it looks to hijack Internet of Things devices like smart cameras and video doorbells. To do so, the group infiltrated wireless network equipment and, among other attacks, was able to disrupt infrastructure in Guam, a sensitive US military installation.
A Flax Typhoon botnet was considered to have infiltrated as many as 260,000 devices across North America, Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia. The group is also said to be preparing a massive cyber attack in the event of any conflict between the United States and China over Taiwan.
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