Biden warns of 'evolving intelligence' that Russia is exploring potential cyberattacks and urges companies to beef up defenses 'immediately'

• President Biden issued a new warning of "evolving intelligence" of potential Russian cyberattacks.
• The statement also called on private companies to "harden your cyber defenses immediately."

The US has "evolving intelligence" that the Russian government is "exploring options for potential cyberattacks," President Joe Biden said in a statement on Monday.

"It's part of Russia's playbook," Biden said.

The President also called on private sector companies to "harden your cyber defenses immediately" with measures such as multi-factor authentication, up-to-date security software and tools, secure data backups, and routine training drills.

Most of the country's critical infrastructure is controlled by private sectors, which limits the government's ability to secure its digital borders, Biden said.

Cyber warfare between the US and Russia has been relatively quiet in spite of Russia's escalating invasion of Ukraine and subsequent economic sanctions by the US, EU, and UK.

But that's not to say that adversaries aren't trying. Research from Microsoft found that 58% of the nation-state cyberattacks that it observed over the course of a year originated from Russia.

A successful attack could have major implications for US national security, according to a memo from Goldman Sachs, specifically if the IT infrastructure is targeted in the critical sectors of energy, financial services, or transportation.

For example, Lloyd's insurance estimated that a shutdown of the power grid in the Northeast US could cause economic damages of up to $1 trillion.

Thirteen additional sectors have also been designated by the US as being critical to security and public health.

A Russian cyberattack on Ukraine in 2017 inflicted more than $10 billion in damage, according to a US assessment — about 10% of the Ukrainian economy at the time.