Microsoft says it informed the Ukrainian government about cyberattacks

Microsoft said Monday it’s been informing Ukraine about cyberattacks on civilian and military targets, though the software maker didn’t attribute the attacks to any specific actors.

“In recent days, we have provided threat intelligence and defensive suggestions to Ukrainian officials regarding attacks on a range of targets, including Ukrainian military institutions and manufacturers and several other Ukrainian government agencies,” Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president, wrote in a blog post. “This work is ongoing.”

U.S. tech companies are responding in myriad ways to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began late last week and has so far led to over 400 civilian deaths. Facebook owner Meta and Google parent Alphabet have announced efforts designed to tamp down misinformation on their platforms.

One of its primary responsibilities is to “help defend governments and countries from cyberattacks,” according to the post. Smith said the company has employees in Russia, Ukraine and across the region.

On Feb. 24, before Russia launched its first missile strikes, Microsoft observed a new type of malware hitting Ukraine and delivered information to the country’s government, which is a customer, Smith wrote. The attacks were narrowly targeted, in contrast to the NotPetya ransomware virus that hit the broader Ukrainian economy in 2017, he added.