Russia escalates AI-powered cyberattacks on Ukraine's public and private sectors – ministry

Russia has ramped up cyberattacks on Ukraine's public and private sectors using artificial intelligence (AI) tools, making the attacks faster to prepare and execute, according to Oksana Ferchuk, Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine. The enemy has recognized that it cannot physically destroy digital infrastructure, leading to an intensification of cyberattacks not only against the public sector but also against the commercial sector.

Ferchuk stated this at the Technovation conference during the Kyiv International Economic Forum in Kyiv.

Ukraine is exploring ways to utilize AI tools to counter these attacks, with the government planning to invest in cybersecurity education and expand programs covering AI models at academic institutions. The Ministry of Digital Transformation is urging public sector colleagues to form cyber teams in the coming weeks, while businesses are advised to ensure they have a dedicated cybersecurity specialist or team.

Ferchuk emphasized that large companies must analyze which professional cybersecurity tools are used in their businesses, noting that simply having a team of specialists is insufficient. A professional tool must be installed on every computer used by employees to monitor their condition, she stated.

Earlier, Cyber Protection Department director Dmytro Pakholchenko revealed that CERT-UA specialists have identified signs of potential AI use by malicious actors between January and September 2026 when preparing phishing messages, creating fake web pages, and developing software code. Although there is no separate accounting category for AI-related incidents, Pakholchenko's team believes malicious actors are increasingly relying on AI tools compared to the previous year.

Vitaliy Balashov, deputy minister of digital transformation for cybersecurity and cloud technologies, also highlighted the trend of malicious actors using AI, stating that some attacks detected by the Security Operations Center of the state enterprise Diia may involve AI, enhancing both attackers' and defenders' capabilities.