We have moved from the era of Cold War, which involved soldiers, tanks and nuclear missiles, to an era of Cyber War, which involves hackers, networks and computers. It’s a different world but requires the same level of readiness. Are we there?
eSecurity Planet takes a look.
WASHINGTON — Military officials readily admit that government information systems are subject to constant attack from hackers domestic and abroad, with some commissioned by authorities in enemy nations.
But at what point does that routine sparring become cause for escalation, to the point where the U.S. military might mount something that could fairly be considered a cyber offensive?
We’re not there yet, but we may be getting close, according to panelists here at a presentation at the State of the Net conference, an annual tech policy event hosted by the Congressional Internet Caucus.
“To me we’re in the stage before warfare. We’re in the stages of people poking around,” said Jim Lewis, director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “I don’t think we’ve seen a case of state versus state warfare.”
