President Joe Biden is warning Americans about possible Russian cyberattacks as a form of retaliation.

The White House is urging private companies to bolster their cyber defense.

New intelligence suggests the Russian government is exploring options that would target critical U.S. infrastructure.

"There's so much more we need to do to have the confidence that we've locked our digital doors, particularly for the critical services that Americans rely on," says U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger.

Russian state-sponsored actors have previously targeted the U.S. with cyberattacks, including a 2016 election interference operation and a massive SolarWinds hack.

The Biden administration has also attributed cyberattacks targeting Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and banks to Russia

Cybersecurity expert Adam Schwam of Sandwire says he thinks we should be on "heightened alert."

He says users should change their passwords and that IT services for companies should make sure everything is up to date in terms of virus or AV definitions.

Utility companies, big and small, tell News 12 they are doing all they can to prevent cyberattacks.

"We safeguard people's information," says Sami Saatchi of SVS Fine Jewelry. "Privacy is huge."

Saatchi says they make sure all of the personal information they receive is encrypted

Ordinary citizens could also have their information hacked at home and held for ransom.

Schwam says Russia could target a municipality or utilities such as electric, gas, water and transportation.

"The cybersecurity terrorists in Russia are pretty sophisticated," Schwam says. "Their full-time job is to cause havoc."

He says the cyber war is like "no war we've ever encountered."