Mikhailo Fedorov, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, has become a new hero in the documentary film "The First Code"
"The First Code" is a research film that takes a journey through time, featuring interviews with leaders of the most prominent IT companies founded in Ukraine. It covers the period from the creation of the first computer by Ukrainian engineers to the present day, where the IT sector has become not only a powerful industry but also an important front in the war against Russia.
Mikhailo Fedorov gave a significant interview to the author of the research, Vladyslav Savchenko, in which he talked about the cyber war with Russia. He discussed the attacks on Ukrainian digital infrastructure, the role of the volunteer movement and the IT army in defending the cyber front, and how technology helps in identifying military criminals from Bucha and other places.
On his social media pages, the interviewer of the film, Vladyslav Savchenko, shared a story where Mikhailo Fedorov explains how their own "Red Team" began "attacking" the Ukrainian energy infrastructure a few months before the start of the full-scale war to test vulnerabilities and fix them.
"In December, when the information wave about a possible full-scale invasion started, the world media was reporting on potential hacker attacks on the energy infrastructure. A few days before the New Year, we held meetings with all the people responsible for the IT sector in the energy direction. We engaged our 'Red Team,' which, throughout January, 'attacked' our own energy infrastructure to find vulnerable points. We were preparing and understanding the challenges of the next day."
Fedorov also commented on Ukraine's cybersecurity and the defense against attacks from Russia.
"The war with Russia has been ongoing since 2014. Therefore, when we created the Ministry of Digital Transformation and set the goal of digitizing all services in the country, we understood that cyber warfare is an integral part of any war, including physical warfare. So, we did everything in a way that would allow us to withstand attacks in the cyberspace. We now understand the challenges of the future and what needs to be done. We have already achieved many fundamental things for the cyber resilience of the state."