As per the study, from mid-2020, “Recorded Future’s midpoint collection revealed a steep rise in the use of infrastructure tracked as AXIOMATICASYMPTOTE, which encompasses ShadowPad command and control servers, to target a large swathe of India’s power sector.”
The report also said that 10 power sector organisations in India, including four of the five regional load dispatch centres responsible for the operation of the power grid, have been found to be targets in a coordinated campaign against India’s critical infrastructure.
Other targets identified include two Indian seaports, said the report.
Retired Lt Gen DS Hooda, a cyber-expert who oversaw India’s borders with Pakistan and China, reportedly told The New York Times:
Lt Gen Hooda also told The New York Times that the cyberattack was like a “warning” to India to show that they were capable of doing so.
Further, the publication points out, that cyber attacks are less devastating than nuclear attacks, and give China a “strategic and psychological edge.”