Salon.com > Cyber Attacks

Cyber attacks could cause the next world war

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:33:00 +0000

ATLANTA, Georgia — It’s a new breed of warfare, unlike anything you’ve ever seen.

It can threaten a nation’s core security, cause mass casualties and weaken the economy, according to the Government Accountability Office, the US Congress’ research arm.

Assailants “could gain control of critical switches and derail passenger trains, or trains loaded with lethal chemicals. ... They could contaminate the water supply in major cities,” then-US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said last October. Foes could take down electric or water systems, fomenting public panic, reaping high death tolls and causing high physical and economic costs.

It might not even be immediately clear who was behind the attack, or where it was coming from. This devastating power could be wielded with comparatively few operatives, or without the support of a national government. And the massive kinetic strength of the US military would be essentially helpless in thwarting it.

Critical infrastructure vulnerable to simple cyber-attacks

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 15:47:00 +0000

Spearphishing -- the technique by which hackers gain access to computer networks through sending misleading, malicious emails which users click on -- is a risk to more than just small computer networks. According to the New York Times' "Bits" blog, critical infrastructure like "watersheds, power grids, oil refineries and nuclear plants" are vulnerable to spearphishing attacks.

"Spearphishing is so easy to deploy and effective that 91 percent of targeted attacks start with malicious e-mails, according to TrendMicro, a computer security firm with headquarters in Tokyo. But that same method could be used to harm utilities, power plants, gas pipelines and watersheds," wrote Nicole Perlroth.

In a demonstration to test the vulnerability to such an attack at power plants and oil pipelines, Tyler Klinger, a security researcher at Critical Intelligence sent targeted emails -- the sort that might conceal a spearphish -- to control room supervisors and engineers. The emails were easily accessible through LinkedIn and sales team contact sites.

Israel hit by millions of cyber attacks

Mon, 19 Nov 2012 16:06:00 +0000

Israel has become the target of a cyber warfare campaign since the beginning of Operation Pillar of Defense.

Officials in Israel said that there have been up to 44 million cyber attacks on government websites since the beginning of the military campaign in Gaza Wednesday.

"This is an unprecedented attack," Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz told reporters said AFP.

"All the attacks were thwarted except for one, which targeted a specific website that was down for six or seven minutes," he added.

The Finance minister described the attack as a "second front" in the war.

GlobalPost has already reported on a declaration made by the hacker group Anonymous to fight a cyber war with Israel over its offensive in Gaza.