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Keyboard is weapon of choice in cyber-war
By Shelia Watson
Contributing Writer
Forget guns and tanks. The real weapons of war are a keyboard and Internet connection.
Or so it was on April 27, 2007, when many of the networks and Web sites in the small European country of Estonia were overwhelmed by a series of cyber-attacks.
According to data from CNET.com, one of the IT industry’s recognized information portals, the attack’s primary impact was not on the military but rather on the civilian infrastructure, including banks, newspapers and Internet service providers, as well as home computer users.
“Something like this, if it’s done right, could bring down an entire country,” said Dave Ramsey, vice president of research services for the South Carolina Research Authority.
In fact, within hours, the entire country was brought down—in part because of the population’s embrace of technology after the fall of the Soviet Union. For Estonians, who carry ID cards with encrypted chips embedded in them, online banking, e-commerce and e-
government are standard in the course of their day. CNET reported that the last several elections were conducted online from home.
Could it happen here?
Following Estonia’s cyber-war, many nations and military planners began studying the attack, particularly in light of its scope and level of sophistication.
After the attack, Linnar Viik, an Internet expert who lives in Estonia, pointed out in a statement that one of the targets was the press. Viik noted that while the attacks did not completely disable the news sources, they did underscore how critical online news has become to the population, particularly during emergencies.
Forewarned is forearmed
Military networks generally have adequate security to withstand most cyber-attacks. However, most individual companies and organizations that make up the civilian infrastructure are less secure and less able to withstand an attack.
“When you look at what we deal with on a daily basis, with the constant stream of spam and viruses trying to make their way into our network, it really wouldn’t take a huge amount of effort from hackers to do serious damage to other less-secure networks,” said Ramsey.
“Especially if you consider that there could be other groups, like terrorists or people involved in organized crime, who could do a lot to assist them.”
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