The International Committee of the Red Cross has introduced rules for hackers participating in global conflicts, including the Russian-Ukrainian war. Read more about the new rules for cyber troops and the reaction of hackers to the innovations

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For the first time in history, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has introduced rules for civilian hackers involved in certain conflicts. The full list of rules for cyber groups and the reaction of Ukrainian hackers to the innovations are described in the article below. 

Rules for hackers: what is it for? 

Due to the attack by russian troops on Ukraine, more and more people are joining patriotic hacker groups every day. The new rules prohibit hacking activities that endanger civilians and attacks on hospitals. 

The International Committee of the Red Cross warns hackers involved in the war in Ukraine that their actions may endanger not only civilian lives but also their own. 

It is noted that patriotic hacking and cyber warfare are common practices during wars and periods of high tension among the world's population. 

However, according to Tilman Rodenhauser, ICRC legal adviser, the tense trend that resulted from hacking in the russian-Ukrainian war is now spreading around the world.

"Many experts consider hacking to be so-called 'patriotic cyber revenge' and think that hacking is technically simple and unlikely to have a strong effect. However, we see huge cyber groups on both sides. These "armies" continue to successfully disrupt many civilian facilities, such as banks, pharmacies, hospitals, railways, etc.", comments Tilman Rodenhauser.

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New rules for hackers: the full list 

● Do not use cyberattacks against civilian objects;

● Do not use malware or other methods that spread automatically and cause damage to military and civilian objects;

● When organising cyber attacks on military objectives, do everything possible to avoid or minimise the impact of the operation on civilians;

● Do not conduct any cyber operations against medical and humanitarian facilities;

● Do not conduct any cyber-attacks on objects essential to the survival of the population or that could unleash dangerous forces;

● Do not threaten violence against civilians;

● Do not encourage actions that violate international humanitarian law;

● Comply with the above rules, even if the enemy does not comply with them.

Ukrainian hacker groups

Due to the brutal war in Ukraine, all lines between civilian and military hacking have inevitably been blurred, as the government supports attacks on russian targets by civilian groups, such as the Ukrainian IT army. 

It is noted that today the Ukrainian IT army has about 160,000 people involved in hacking attacks on civilian targets in russia. 

A representative of the Ukrainian IT army noted that the ban on attacks on medical facilities has already been put into effect, but the cyber group as a whole has not yet decided whether it will follow the new ICRC rules.

In turn, russian hacker groups continue to attack Ukraine and do not understand why they should follow the rules of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Just a reminder. About 50% of the financial apps popular in Ukraine are of russian origin. You can find out which apps are dangerous to use and which of them may transfer personal data to the aggressor country here.

Photo: Depositphotos

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