The tasks of ensuring the information security of the FSB of the Russian Federation are solved in two planes - its own protection of confidential information and the building of an information security system in the whole country. The practice of the department is expressed in organizational measures - licensing, certification, accreditation - and the conduct of operational-search measures.
Legal regulation
The fundamentals of building an information security system in the country and the role of the FSB of the Russian Federation in this are indicated in the Constitution, which also stipulates the general tasks of protecting the sovereignty and the right of citizens to protect personal information. At the second level of regulation, the tasks of the department are determined by the laws "On Information", "On the FSB", "On the Protection of Personal Data".
From the point of view of independent regulation, the agency has the right to issue, within its competence, normative acts that are mandatory for use by organizations developing means of ensuring the security of information containing state secrets and cryptographic data protection tools. The powers of the FSB in the field of prosecuting hackers and ensuring the security of the country's information networks are determined by the legislation on operational-search activities.
Building information security systems in the FSB
The unified information system of the state assumes that the data of law enforcement agencies should be protected to the maximum extent, there is no difference between the prosecutor's office and the FSB of the Russian Federation. But increased requirements apply to information arrays that contain information related to state secrets. Separate categories of information with a high degree of confidentiality arising in the activities of the department include data on committed offenses affecting the issues of ensuring information security of the Russian Federation, as well as information on intelligence and other activities of special services and organizations of foreign states.
The basic principles of operation of information security systems in the agencies of the department are determined by Art. 20 of the law "On the Federal Security Service". To carry out its activities, the department has the right to independently develop, create and operate information systems, communication systems and data transmission systems, as well as information security tools, including cryptographic protection tools, without licensing. If personal data of citizens is processed in the systems of the department, it should not limit their rights provided by the Federal Law "On Personal Data".
Tasks of the FSB of the Russian Federation to create an information security system throughout the country
At a large-scale level, the tasks of building a unified data and network security system in the country are determined by the Information Security Concept, which reflects a systemic vision of threats and ways to respond to them. The document was developed by the Security Council, it describes two information security threats, in which the department is involved:
- counteraction to the activities of foreign intelligence services and other services of foreign states capable of causing damage to the sovereignty and security of the country;
- opposition to the work of the political apparatus of foreign states, which erodes social values and affects the mood of the population
The law defines the powers of the department in specific areas of security, which help it to solve the set global tasks:
- participation in the formation and implementation of state and scientific and technical policies in the field of information security, including using engineering and technical means and cryptographic information security tools;
- organization of work with cryptographic and engineering-technical methods of IP security, as well as systems of encrypted, classified and other types of special communication in Russia and its institutions located abroad;
- licensing and certification of certain types of activities providing for access to state secrets.
These functions of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation are provided with budget funding and the selection of qualified personnel. The subdivision of information support for operational-search activity is responsible for the creation of systems for working with information for the needs of the department. The issuance of licenses to companies specializing in the development of data protection and security measures is carried out by the Center for Licensing, Certification and Protection of State Secrets.
They are licensed for the following activities:
- work with data containing state secrets;
- activities to create information security tools for data containing state secrets;
- implementation of certain measures related to data security;
- development, creation;
- development, creation and sale of technical devices that help to receive information;
- activity to identify eavesdropping devices;
- development and production of means of protecting information arrays with an increased level of confidentiality.
In addition to licensing, the functions of the Center include accreditation of laboratories for testing CIPF. Certification of information security tools has also become one of the functions of the department, a list of certified tools can be found on the website. Within the framework of licensing, the Center confirms the degree of secrecy of the data with which the company intends to work.
Also, this division of the organization is responsible for ensuring security during the import into and export from the country of encryption means and means that ensure the secret receipt of information, issuing permission for such actions. Educational is a separate function. For employees of companies wishing to obtain a license to develop information security systems, the department organizes a professional retraining program.
The CIB, or the so-called 18th Center, became a separate division of the FSB of the Russian Federation responsible for maintaining an appropriate level of information security in the country. It was created on the basis of the Office of Computer and Information Security of the Counterintelligence Department of the FSB and is part of the counterintelligence service of the FSB of Russia. The unit is located in the former building of the Main Research Center of the KGB of the USSR, it is engaged in the investigation of crimes committed in the field of information security, illegal distribution of personal data and e-commerce.
Among the well-known cases of the division in the field of electronic security is the investigation in 2013 of the case of the head of the Chronopay company, the electronic payment service organized a number of DDoS attacks on Aeroflot's servers.
You can also name the following interesting cases of the service in the field of information security:
- in 2019 in Krasnoyarsk, the programmer was convicted under Art. 273 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for the use of malicious programs aimed at violating the security of networks and collecting information. It was proved to the court in the appellate instance that the program has no signs of malware, as it is used to search for vulnerabilities in its own network. An officer of the FSB of Russia acted in court as a witness confirming the absence of signs of harmfulness in the program. The appeal was not upheld, the court found that vulnerability scanners belonged to the category of malware, and the decision became a precedent;
- In 2018, a hacker was convicted in Volgograd for using a program designed to neutralize information security tools. The software he created undertook 2320 computer attacks on web servers belonging to government information resources. In addition, the hacker made 181 attempts to inject the SQL code into the requests sent to the Internet resource, containing commands and parameters for the server of the information resource "Electronic government". The hacking attempts failed due to the high degree of information security of the servers of the executive authorities.
The agency's work manifests itself at many levels, which underscores its importance in the field of data security.
16.12.2020
