More Battles on the InfoWar Front

Defense Department Looking to Automate Cyber Defenses

Automation is wonderful, but nothing beats a keen pair of eyes.  I'm sure the government will monitor the automation.

Read the Infowar Blog

Here is the link. Infowar Blog Lots of late-breaking news, etc.

 Assume everyone who can read has learned of the attack on GoDaddy yesterday.  The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Yes, Sir! Senator!

The Senate has blocked an important cybersecurity bill that would have required business and industry to beef up their security standards, especially in vulnerable infrastructures like dams, transportation and power grids.  If information warfare ever breaks out, and most experts think this is just a matter of time, it will affect all businesses, and then we will have to listen to them howl about the money they are losing.  Yet, the U.S, Chamber of Commerce screamed that the legislation would be “too burdensome” for corporations. 

From my years in IT, I learned that business never wants to spend money that won’t immediately bring in more money, and that the short term always trumps the long term.   Most CEO’s understand zilch about their vulnerability in the area of cybersecurity  and how real the threat of information warfare is.  They think the IT department, well, they should serve sales and marketing and sure, keep our data safe.  

Ask yourself how many companies have had credit card and other information stolen.  Hasn’t that been rather costly?  Wouldn’t it have been better to beef up security rather than alienate customers and suffer all the bad publicity?  Can’t they see beyond their noses?

I guess not.  For a detailed look at the Senate’s short-sightedness, here is the  link from the New York Times:

 Cybersecurity Bill Blocked

CyberSecurity: people just don't get it!

Gaaa!  After reading about the Olympic grand slam opening last night, I caught sight of a NY Times article about taking the teeth out of a CyberSecurity bill because it would be too hard (read expensive), for businesses to comply with.  Business would be the first to scream and rant if a cyber war broke out and they were brought down by infrastructure problems or a ripped-to-shreds economy.

I worked in IT for 20+ years, and believe me, business is always dragging its security heels.  I had to scream loud and long before the customer service people stopped leaving orders by the fax and copy machines, orders with the customers' credit card numbers and expiration dates.  I had to beg for a shredder for confidential information.  I had to preach and tear my hair before everyone understood that by law you could not put the credit card CVVC number on an electronic file.  I cannot tell you  how many forms used to ask for that number.  Duh!  Business is in business to do business and as the old saying goes, the devil take the hindmost.  Credit card processors are hide bound and dragged their feet for as long as possible before the fines outweighed the cost of cleaning up their act.

Business will never implement security measures because it's always more important to please the marketing department who comes up with some meatball idea that needs implementation yesterday!  Executives are mostly focused on sales, not the security infrastructure.  Someone has to mind the CyberSecurity store and right now it's looking like that someone is no one.

When the cyber war breaks out, don't blame me and don't blame your president.  Blame those who didn't want to spend a few bucks to beef up their systems:  electric grids, transportation, nuclear power plants, all those pieces of our infrastructure that may be vulnerable to cyber-attacks.  Brother can you spare a dime?  

New Book on Info War

The Art of Intelligence: lessons from a life in the CIA's Clandestine Service

Just out today!  Sounds compelling for anyone interested in our government's fight against cyber-terrorism.  

Cassandra Syndrome

Counter-terrorism czar Richard Clarke discusses cyber war in this month's (April 2012) Smithsonian Magazine. This story  sounds so much like The Shadow Warriors (the Stuxnet virus) that I too feel like Cassandra, for having first written about Info War after hitting upon the idea for the "Warriors" from Paul Strassman in an article way back in 1995.  Can you believe it? 

I recommend anyone interested in the topic of cyber or info war to head to your nearest library and sit down with the April Smithsonian Magazine.  According to Clarke, the U.S. can go on the offensive but we are virtually (!) helpless against an offense.  Where are Wayne, Christof, Kathy Chang and even Emma  (my characters) when we need their expertise so badly?  Bring on the Skunk Works! 

Lots of questions, few answers, but Richard Clarke has his ideas about Stuxnet.  Endlessly fascinating. 

The Shadow Warriors  hit the nail on the head.  Read about it now, before the Cyber War brings down your computers. 

Advanced, Persistant Threats - Cybercrime Now

The Next Generation of Cybercrime: How it’s evolved, where it’s going.  I downloaded this from Computer World's White Pages today.  Very interesting.  APT are a form of Info Warfare.



Want to read some fictional cybercrime?  Have a Kindle?  The Shadow Warriors are lurking in the wings.

http://tinyurl.com/6yp5hsa

Another cool information warfare site!

Infowar Monitor
 The revolutions in the Middle East are also being fought on the net, Facebook and even Twitter.  In fact a Tweeter observed the raid on Osama Bin Laden's compound, wondering WTF?


The Syrians, as one might expect, have tried to usurp cyberspace for the own devious aims.  See the above link. 

Another skirmish in the Cyber War

Bringing the site down is not as dire as hacking into it would be. 



CIA Website Brought Down

Cyber War

This just in: Cyberwar, the NSA and the Internet 

Some interesting bedfellows, but then we all know that war and politics make strange bedfellows.

Information Warfare Web site

Any readers or potential readers of The Shadow Warriors might want to learn more about Information Warfare.  This is a great site that has all the latest hacks and attempted hacks.  
Information Warfare Web Site 

The info warriors have to stay on the cutting edge, no, make that the bleeding edge of technology. 

The Shadow Warriors, Auf Deutsch

“The Shadow Warriors” beschreibt Information Warfare. Hacker aus allen Winkeln der Welt, wollen entweder bösartiges Software (die Schattenkrieger des Titels) erfinden oder stehlen. Sie können Kraftwerke und den Luftverkehr stillegen, sogar die Verteidigung eines Landes in die Knie bringen. Die Handlung spielt hauptsächlich in Göttingen, aber auch in Asien und Europa, einschliesslich Berlin bevor die Mauer fiel. Dennoch sind die Gefahren heute genau so akut wie damals, wenn nicht noch grösser. Emma Lee Davis, die Heldin des Romans, beschreibt die Hackerkultur in ihrer respektlosen Stimme. Sie riskiert ihr Leben und Ehe und muss sich fragen, “wenn wir Computerverbrechen verhindern sollen, wieso helfen wir denn dabei?