Overview

• Ukraine's top two civilian cybersecurity officials, Yurii Shchyhol and Viktor Zhora, have been fired amid an embezzlement investigation involving software purchases from 2020-2022.
• The alleged conspirators are accused of skimming 62 million Ukrainian hryvni (currently $1.7 million) from a no-bid contract by inflating the price of software and services purchased from abroad.
• Neither Shchyhol nor Zhora were named in the statement by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, but the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection service, which they headed, was mentioned as involved in the scheme.
• Both officials have represented Ukraine at major conferences in Washington and European capitals and have been instrumental in the country's defense against Russian hacking campaigns.
• The dismissal of Zhora, in particular, could impact Ukraine's cybersecurity relationship with the U.S. and other Western allies.