LONDON, May 30. /TASS/. Russia’s embassy to the United Kingdom has warned London that its plans to establish a cyber command and use hackers against countries it doesn’t like may come back to bite it as this is essentially a form of cyberwarfare.
"The British defense ministry’s ‘ambitious’ plans in the area of information and communications technologies that were made public on May 29 demonstrated that London is seeking to raise the stakes in its fight against the mythical Russian threat. Rattling their cyber sabers, British officials announce mass hiring of hackers to the country’s armed forces and establishing a specialized command to coordinate not only defensive but also offensive operations in the area of information and communications technologies," it said.
"As a matter of fact, this is about militarizing information space with an eye to carrying out offensive plans against Russia. It means that the British indirectly acknowledge their role in the digital aggression against our country, in establishing and sponsoring groups like the much-publicized Ukrainian IT Army which is engaged by London and its partners in their proxy war against Russia."
"The local authorities seem to care little about the long-term consequences of this provocative course. London’s preparations for the use of its offensive cyber potential against Russia is fraught with a large-scale confrontation in the area of information and communications technologies with hardly predictable consequences, including for the United Kingdom itself," the embassy warned.