Cyber Threats
Cyber Threats
Roger Larew
SEC 402 Informational Warfare
February 16, 2011
Before we get into the major cyber terrorism threats that we all have to deal with I wanted to first define what cyber terrorism is. According to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, cyber terrorism is any premeditated, politically motivated attack against information, computer systems, computer programs, and data which results in violence against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents
Unlike an annoying virus or computer attack that results in denial of service, a cyber terrorist attack could lead to physical violence or extreme financial harm. According to the U.S. Commission of Critical Infrastructure Protection, possible cyber terrorism targets include the banking industry, military installations, power plants, air traffic control centers, and water systems. Cyber terrorism is often referred to as electronic terrorism or information war.
Based on recent reports and the information presented to congress, America has a long way to go before security threats are adequately addressed.
Almost half of 2,131 U.S. companies polled had no formal security policies in place, and most relied primarily on user passwords and multiple logons for protection. Only 49% of U.S. companies had plans to raise user awareness of policies and procedures in the next 12 month. Unbelievably only half of 150 companies surveyed by InformationWeek Research one week after the terrorist attacks said that they plan to reassess the security of their facilities in light of those events. We need more people to be doing more creative thinking about computer security, than those who are trying to attack us.
In December, 2000 the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction (aka The Gilmore Commission) released their second annual report which stated two possible cyber terrorist scenarios. First, "It is easy to
Roger Larew
SEC 402 Informational Warfare
February 16, 2011
Before we get into the major cyber terrorism threats that we all have to deal with I wanted to first define what cyber terrorism is. According to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, cyber terrorism is any premeditated, politically motivated attack against information, computer systems, computer programs, and data which results in violence against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents
Unlike an annoying virus or computer attack that results in denial of service, a cyber terrorist attack could lead to physical violence or extreme financial harm. According to the U.S. Commission of Critical Infrastructure Protection, possible cyber terrorism targets include the banking industry, military installations, power plants, air traffic control centers, and water systems. Cyber terrorism is often referred to as electronic terrorism or information war.
Based on recent reports and the information presented to congress, America has a long way to go before security threats are adequately addressed.
Almost half of 2,131 U.S. companies polled had no formal security policies in place, and most relied primarily on user passwords and multiple logons for protection. Only 49% of U.S. companies had plans to raise user awareness of policies and procedures in the next 12 month. Unbelievably only half of 150 companies surveyed by InformationWeek Research one week after the terrorist attacks said that they plan to reassess the security of their facilities in light of those events. We need more people to be doing more creative thinking about computer security, than those who are trying to attack us.
In December, 2000 the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction (aka The Gilmore Commission) released their second annual report which stated two possible cyber terrorist scenarios. First, "It is easy to
References: Cyber terrorism Testimony Before the Special Oversight Panel on Terrorism, Committee on Armed Services, U.S. House of Representatives by Dorothy E. Denning of Georgetown University - May 23, 2000 - http://www.cs.georgetown.edu/~denning/infosec/cyberterror.html