Massive cyberattack hits Ukrainian government websites amid Russia tensions
A computer keyboard lit by a displayed cyber code is seen in this illustration picture taken on March 1, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/IllustrationKYIV, Jan 14 - A massive cyberattack warning Ukrainians to "be afraid and expect the worst" hit government websites late on Thursday, leaving some websites inaccessible on Friday morning and prompting Kyiv to open an investigation.
The Russian foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Russia has previously denied being behind cyber attacks on Ukraine. Russia said dialogue was continuing but was hitting a dead end as it tried to persuade the West to bar Ukraine from joining NATO and roll back decades of alliance expansion in Europe - demands that Washington has called "non-starters".Commenting on the cyberattack, a top Ukrainian security official told Reuters: "All subjects of cyber security were aware of such possible provocations by the Russian Federation. Therefore the response to these incidents is carried out as usual.
The United States said on Thursday Russia might be trying to create a pretext to launch a new military assault on Ukraine, comparing the situation to the circumstances in 2014.