The state of cyberwar in Ukraine — and how CISOs can help

Earlier this month my researcher Barbara Schluetter and I had the pleasure of attending the Kyiv International Cyber Resilience Forum 2025, in Kyiv, Ukraine. Over the course of two days the various presenters from the government of Ukraine, EU organizations, neighboring European nations and other private entities outlined the current situation with respect to cybersecurity resilience in Ukraine. What was clear, is the conference monikers were spot on, “Fortress of the free world and firewall of the free world.”  

Maciej Stadejek, director for security and defense policy of the European External Action Service, emphasized in his keynote how, with the EU in mind, the “boundary between peace and conflict is blurred” and the cyber conflict will continue long after the war has concluded and “partnerships need to be long term.”

Cyberwar

The kinetic war is evident each day, often multiple times a day. This is evidenced by the wail of civil defense sirens announcing the impending arrival of Russian missiles or drones. Oleksandr Potii, chairman of the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine commented how “Russia has been attacking Ukraine in an unprecedented scale,” targeting civilian infrastructure, apartment buildings, electric substations, communication nodes, etc. Every locale we had an occasion to visit had a plan in place in case of need to evacuate or shelter. This is the visible war taking place.