February 16, 2009

The Cyber Threat to National Critical Infrastructures: Beyond Theory

By Kenneth Geers

Adversary threats to critical infrastructures have always existed during times of conflict, but threat scenarios now include peacetime attacks from anonymous computer hackers. Current events, including examples from Israel and Estonia, prove that a certain level of real-world disorder can be achieved from hostile data packets alone. This article shows that as dependence on IT and the internet grow, governments should make proportional investments in network security, incident response, technical training, and international collaboration.