The disproportionate number of hackers coming from or working through Russia is a troublesome issue, not least as lazy punditry tends to overstate the problem and Russian patriots seek to downplay it. CGA Academic Chair Prof. Mark Galeotti‘s latest column in the Moscow News, ‘Why are Russians excellent cybercriminals?’ managed to both ruffle feathers and also raise the level of the discussion. His exploration of the reasons for the high levels of Russian hacking - the country accounts for over a third of global cybercrime revenue – noted the very high levels of math and computer skills to be found amongst the population, compared with a relative lack of opportunities. In addition, there remains the demand for the hackers’ services by organized crime and, many argue, the Russian state itself. It turned out to be one of the most popular and widely-discussed and tweeted articles the online newspaper has run, but also generated no little argument. The Russian online news service Vesti ran a counter-article which was also used as the basis for a TV news package: Prof. Galeotti appreciated being described as a “well-known blogger” although he would also have liked to have been interviewed to reply to the critique which, ironically, ended up painting Russia as even worse than he did. Meanwhile, Business Insider ran the story (calling it “an excellent read”), as did a wide range of blogs and computer security specialist media outlets.
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