US Prepares First-Strike Cyber-Forces
US Prepares First-Strike Cyber-Forces
  • Korea IT Times (info@koreaittimes.com)
  • 승인 2012.10.16 18:23
  • 댓글 0
이 기사를 공유합니다

Cyber-attacks could inflict as much damage as 9/11. warned the US defense secretary

WASHINGTON D.C, USA – Cyber-attacks could inflict as much damage on the US as the physical attacks on 11 September 2001, the US defence secretary has warned.

Leon Panetta said the country was preparing to take pre-emptive action if a serious cyber-attack was imminent.

He said US intelligence showed "foreign actors" were targeting control systems for utilities, industry and transport.

Advanced tools were being created to subvert key computer control systems and wreak havoc, said Mr Panetta.

"An aggressor nation or extremist group could gain control of critical switches and derail passenger trains, or trains loaded with lethal chemicals," said Mr Panetta in a speech to business leaders held on the USS Intrepid - a former aircraft carrier that is now a museum.

"They could contaminate the water supply in major cities, or shut down the power grid across large parts of the country.

"Such a destructive cyber-terrorist attack could paralyse the nation and create a profound new sense of vulnerability," he said.

Smaller scale cyber-attacks were now commonplace, said Mr Panetta.

In recent weeks, many large US firms had suffered attacks that had involved them being bombarded with huge amounts of data, he said. In addition, oil companies in Qatar and Saudi Arabia had been hit by the Shamoon attack, which had tried to replace computer data with gibberish. About 30,000 machines were hit by the Shamoon attack.

The US defence department had developed tools to trace attackers, he added, and a cyber-strike force that could conduct operations via computer networks. And it was now finalising changes to its rules of engagement that would define when it could "confront major threats quickly".

"Potential aggressors should be aware that the United States has the capacity to locate them and hold them accountable for actions that harm America or its interests," he said.

"If we detect an imminent threat of attack that will cause significant physical destruction or kill American citizens, we need to have the option to take action to defend the nation, when directed by the president."

Source: BBC News

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19922421


댓글삭제
삭제한 댓글은 다시 복구할 수 없습니다.
그래도 삭제하시겠습니까?
댓글 0
댓글쓰기
계정을 선택하시면 로그인·계정인증을 통해
댓글을 남기실 수 있습니다.

  • #1206, 36-4 Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, Korea(Postal Code 07331)
  • 서울특별시 영등포구 여의도동 36-4 (국제금융로8길 34) / 오륜빌딩 1206호
  • URL: www.koreaittimes.com / m.koreaittimes.com. Editorial Div. 02-578-0434 / 010-2442-9446. Email: info@koreaittimes.com.
  • Publisher: Monica Younsoo Chung. Chief Editorial Writer: Kim Hyoung-joong. CEO: Lee Kap-soo. Editor: Jung Yeon-jin.
  • Juvenile Protection Manager: Yeon Choul-woong. IT Times Canada: Willow St. Vancouver BC, Canada / 070-7008-0005.
  • Copyright(C) Korea IT Times, Allrights reserved.
ND소프트