Cyber security company Surfshark has put together a special index that includes information about cyber security levels of 15 former Soviet Republics. Lithuania is at the top, followed by Estonia. Third place is shared by Latvia and Ukraine.
The cyber security index of these countries is higher than that of Australia, Canada and Russia. It is also ahead of the average in Europe. This reflects these countries’ good preparation level to prevent cyber attacks in the region. The last three spots in the index are held by Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, according to Surfshark.
Latvia is is 3rd in the post-soviet countries’ cyber security index and has a score of 75.32.
It is 3% higher than the average in Europe and puts Latvia ahead of countries like Australia, Canada and Russia. Globally, however, Latvia and Ukraine share the twenty fifth place.
Along ex-Soviet republics Lithuania is first, followed by Estonia (90.90). Latvia and Ukraine are third (75.32). Results of these countries are generally higher than the average in Europe and Russia (71.43).
According to data from the Strategic and International Studies Centre, since 2015 Ukraine has suffered the majority of cyber attacks from Russia. Most attacks were aimed at state institutions, military and infrastructure objects. Attacks range from phishing scams to DdoS attacks and computer viruses.
The cyber security situation in ex-Soviet republics under authoritarian regimes is significantly worse when compared to democratic countries. The last three spots on the index are held by Kyrgyzstan, Tajikinstan and Turkmenistan. The average index of authoritarian post-Soviet republics is 36.2 – nearly twice as low as the index of democratic countries (67.53).
Russia also has a low index (71.43). It is lower than the average in the Europe. Nevertheless, it is ahead of certain economically strong countries like Israel, Japan and Norway. Russia’s cyber security has been under a lot of pressure lately. Immediately after the start of the invasion of Ukraine, the number of document leaks in this country has increased by 136%. In Q1 2022 approximately 3.6 million internet users have suffered as a result of this so far.
The entire post-Soviet bloc countries are categorized the following way in Surfshark index: Lithuania (93.51), Estonia (90.91), Latvia (75.32), Ukraine (75.32), Russia (71.43), Belarus (53.25), Georgia (51.95), Moldova (50.65), Kazakhstan (48.05), Azerbaijan (37.66), Uzbekistan (36.36), Armenia (35.06), Kyrgyzstan (24.68), Tajikistan (10.39) and Turkmenistan (7.79).