A Monash expert is available to comment on the Australian government’s announcement of sanctions against Russian national Aleksandr Ermakov over his role in the Medibank cyberattack.
Professor of Practice Nigel Phair, Department of Software Systems & Cybersecurity, Faculty of Information Technology
Contact details: +61 450 501 248 or media@monash.edu
- Impact of cybercrime
- Governance of technology
- Intersection of technology, crime and society
The following can be attributed to Professor Phair:
“I congratulate the Australian government for undertaking such a complex investigation. Attribution of cyber criminals is one of the hardest things to do. It is also the first time Australia has used sanctions and while it most likely won’t result in the arrest of this individual (or probably any others), it puts sand in the gears of the cyber criminals by degrading their efforts to work with others in future criminal pursuits.
This is unlikely to dissuade other internationally based cyber criminals from targeting Australian organisations or individuals, but is a step in the right direction. Australian organisations need to continue to protect their information holdings, the systems where these reside and the people who access it. This includes undertaking fundamental risk management and introducing a competent control framework.
Given the steady rise in cyberattacks for the past few years there is an increasing need to build our cybersecurity capabilities by embedding more cyber awareness education in our educational institutions and organisations and training more professionals so we can grow our national expertise to collectively safeguard our ‘cyber borders’."
For any other topics on which you may be seeking expert comment, contact the Monash University Media Unit on +61 3 9903 4840 or media@monash.edu