(New throughout, adds details)
WARSAW, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Poland on Tuesday raised its nationwide cybersecurity terror threat in the wake of a cyber attack on Ukraine last week, adding that the new alert level was preventative.
Last week, Ukraine was hit by a cyber attack that warned Ukrainians to "be afraid and expect the worst" as the country braces for a possible new military offensive from neighbouring Russia.
Ukrainian officials say the attack hit around 70 internet sites of government bodies including the security and defence council, the cabinet of ministers and several ministries.
The alarm level in Poland, which is Ukraine's Western neighbour, will be in place until 11:59pm on Sunday, Poland's digital ministry said in a statement on its website.
"The introduction of this alert level means that public administration will be obliged to conduct increased monitoring of the security of ICT systems. It is due to the possibility of a possible security breach of electronic communications," the statement said. (Reporting by Joanna Plucinska Editing by Gareth Jones and David Gregorio)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
