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In 2022, hacking attacks of all types grew in frequency, as both public and private sector entities scrambled to address vulnerabilities. Despite the fact that the news cycle was dominated by stories related to the Ukraine-Russia War, inflation, and other events that pushed cyber events off the front page, illicit activity in the “cybersphere” is still one of the greatest dangers America faces.

The evolving online methods of espionage, cyberwarfare, and for-profit hacking, continue to pose a threat, as they disrupt or damage IT systems, compromise critical infrastructure, and steal sensitive data. 

Although many of the more memorable attacks are carried out by ransomware gangs and government-sponsored Advanced Persistent Threat groups (APTs), the past several years have seen the rise of Ransomware-as-a-Service, which can make anyone who buys malicious code on the dark web, a hacker. 

One of the main reasons that Cyber warfare is considered so dangerous is that attacks can originate from anywhere on earth and they are very difficult to initially detect. In addition, with cloud computing and mobile devices becoming more prevalent, it is easier than ever for hackers to gain access to devices and networks remotely. 

That said, here are some of the more notable cyber events of 2022:

Data Breaches Expose Information on Millions of Americans: Generally speaking, when people think of social media giant Twitter’s recent history, they think of the company’s acquisition by Elon Musk and the controversial revelations regarding the deletion of the October 2020 New York Post reporting of the information contained in Hunter Biden’s laptop. Perhaps less memorable than that, but still significant, is the fact that the company and millions of its users were victimized by a data breach this year. 

As a result of a vulnerability discovered in January of 2022, a hacker known as ‘devil’ was able to access the data of over 5.4 million Twitter users. The data included email addresses and phone numbers from celebrities and companies and was offered for sale on the hacking forum known as BreachForums.

Another major data breach centered around Student loans, which were a hot subject in the summer leading up to this year’s midterm elections due to the Biden Administration’s failed Student Loan Forgiveness Program. The hack exposed the social security numbers of more than 2.5 million individuals and involved student loan servicer Nelnet Servicing, which provides technology services including a website portal to two student loan companies, Edfinancial and OSLA services. Student registration data including names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and social security numbers, were accessed as a result of the hack during the months of June and July of 2022. 

Cyber-Warfare Between Nation-States: In 2022, there was no shortage in cyber activity related to everything from reconnaissance and espionage to hacks against critical infrastructure. These types of military cyber operations were evident in the plethora of attacks carried out on both sides of the Russia-Ukraine war, as well as in attacks that were part of other long-standing conflicts between established combatants. 

In the early portion of the Ukraine conflict, there was a spike in cyber-attacks. This spike included the Russian-based Hermetic Wiper attacks that devastated organizations in Ukraine by wiping out data on Windows-based computing systems, as well as the February 2022 distributed-denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks against the financial sector in Ukraine. In the months after the conflict started, hacktivism groups sympathetic to Russia would organize cyber-attacks via the messaging app, Telegram.

Outside of the Ukraine war, this summer saw Iran’s state-owned Khuzestan Steel Co. and two other steel companies, temporarily stop production after suffering an Israeli cyber-attack. The Israeli hacking group that claimed responsibility said it targeted the Iranian steel companies in response to the “aggression of the Islamic Republic.”

Lastly, a Chinese Advanced Persistent Threat group known as APT41, stole at least $20 million in COVID relief (Small Business Administration loans and unemployment insurance). The Secret Service told NBC News that there are currently over 1,000 ongoing investigations into the defrauding of public benefits programs, with China’s APT41 being “a notable player.”

Espionage Hacks Target Policy Experts: North Korean APT Kimsuky targeted individuals who are influential in foreign governments in an effort to gauge where Western policy may be headed on NoKo.

In October, Daniel DePetris, a U.S.-based foreign affairs analyst, received an email claiming to be from the director of the 38 North think-tank, Jenny Town, commissioning an article. But in reality, it was sent was a member of Kimsuky. 

Despite these incidents and the fact that threats facing larger public and private sector entities carry the most potential for devastation, most of the cyber-attacks that occur on a daily basis still target individuals. Whether it’s new ransomware strains from some of the more prominent gangs like STOP/Djvu, or browser hijackers that take you to dangerous sites loaded with malware, with each passing year, you become more likely to be the victim of an online attack. 

Although federal agencies like the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) invest billions of dollars towards keeping Americans safe, wildcards like the Log4Shell Vulnerability do exist, and there just aren’t enough eyes to keep all Americans safe. So, the likelihood is, that next year, much like this year, will play host to the most cyberattacks in history.

Julio Rivera is a business and political strategist, Editorial Director for Reactionary Times, and a political commentator and columnist. His writing, which is focused on cybersecurity and politics, has been published by many of the most heavily trafficked websites in the world.

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Julio Rivera

Julio Rivera is a business and political strategist, the Editorial Director for Reactionary Times and a political commentator and columnist. His writing, which is focused on cybersecurity and politics, has been published by websites including The Hill, Real Clear Politics, Townhall and American Thinker.

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