Cyber-warfare

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Image:Ramses II at Kadesh.jpg Image:Gustavus Adolphus at the Battle at Breitenfeld.jpg Image:M1A1 abrams front.jpg
War
Military history
Eras
Prehistoric · Ancient · Medieval Gunpowder · Industrial · Modern
Battlespace
Air · Information · Land · Sea · Space
Weapons
Armor · Artillery · Biological · Cavalry Chemical · Electronic · Infantry · Nuclear · Psychological
Tactics
Attrition · Guerilla · Maneuver Siege · Total war · Trench
Strategy
Economic · Grand · Operational
Organization
Formations · Ranks · Units
Logistics
Equipment · Materiel · Supply line
Lists
Battles · Commanders · Operations Sieges · Theorists · Wars War crimes · Weapons · Writers

Cyber-warfare (also known as cybernetic war^[1], or cyberwar) is the use of computers and the Internet in conducting warfare in cyberspace.^[2]

1 Types of attacks
2 Eminent threat
3 Known attacks
4 Cyber counterintelligence
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Types of attacks

There are several methods of attack in cyber-warfare, this list is ranked in order of mildest to most severe.

Web vandalism: Attacks that deface webpages, or denial-of-service attacks. This is normally swiftly combated and of little harm.
Propaganda: Political messages can be spread through or to anyone with access to the internet.
Gathering data. Classified information that is not handled securely can be intercepted and even modified, making espionage possible from the other side of the world. See Titan Rain and Moonlight Maze.
Distributed Denial-of-Service Attacks: Large numbers of computers in one country launch a DoS attack against systems in another country.
Equipment disruption: Military activities that use computers and satellites for co-ordination are at risk from this type of attack. Orders and communications can be intercepted or replaced, putting soldiers at risk.
Attacking critical infrastructure: Power, water, fuel, communications, commercial and transportation are all vulnerable to a cyber attack.

[edit] Eminent threat

A "cyber cold war" is causing an eminent threat for the world’s computers. Internet security company, McAfee, in their 2007 annual report stated that approximately 120 countries have been developing ways to use the Internet as a weapon and the targets are financial markets, government computer systems and utilities.

In activities reminiscent of the Cold War, which caused countries to engage in clandestine activities, intelligence agencies are routinely testing networks looking for weaknesses. These techniques for probing weaknesses in the internet and global networks are growing more sophisticated every year. ^[3]

Jeff Green the senior vice president of McAfee Avert Labs was quoted as saying "Cybercrime is now a global issue. It has evolved significantly and is no longer just a threat to industry and individuals but increasingly to national security." They predicted that future attacks will be even more sophisticated. "Attacks have progressed from initial curiosity probes to well-funded and well-organized operations for political, military, economic and technical espionage," ^[4]

The report from McAfee says that China is at the forefront of the cyber war. China has been accused of cyber-attacks on India and Germany and the United States. China denies knowledge of these attacks. Arguments have been expressed regarding China’s involvement indicating, in the methods of computer Hackers who use zombie computers, it only indicates that China has the most amount of computers that are vulnerable to be controlled. ^[5]

In April of 2007, Estonia was cyber-attacked from Russia.^[6] This attack was the tip of the iceberg and is an indication that the ‘’’cyber cold war’’’ is well on it’s way to becoming an international Eminent threat. ^[7]

[edit] Known attacks

The United States has come under attack from countries such as China and Russia. See Titan Rain and Moonlight Maze.^[8]

On May 17, 2007, it was reported that Estonia came under cyber attack from Russia. The Estonian parliament, ministries, banks, and media were targeted.^[9]

On first week of September 2007, the Pentagon and various French, German and British government computers were attacked by hackers of Chinese origin. The Chinese government denies any involvement.

[edit] Cyber counterintelligence

Cyber counterintelligence are measures to identify, penetrate, or neutralize foreign operations that use cyber means as the primary tradecraft methodology, as well as foreign intelligence service collection efforts that use traditional methods to gauge cyber capabilities and intentions.^[10]