The Cyber Terrorist Incident

A number of terrorist incidents over the past 20 years have resulted in a More specifically, what cyber attacks can we actually define as acts of.
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Industrial control systems were originally implemented as isolated, separate networks. They were viewed as secure systems which protected remote locations from being physically broken into and mistreated. For example, the establishment of remote control systems in dams were believed to protect against unlawful release of the dammed water, as no hand-operable valves and switches were accessible. Often the owner of a botnet device will be unaware of it on their system.

This simulation is an example of how possible large scale cyber attacks can be implemented to the industrial sector and highlights the importance of its security. When considering potential threats from cyber terrorism we must look at the industries that may be targeted. Cyber threats to ICS are not uncommon, even before the Aurora Generator Test, incidences of cyber attacks to critical infrastructure are documented. Maras cites that in a Russian hacker gained control of an ICS that operated the flow of natural gas. Furthermore, and in more recent years, terrorist groups are publishing media promoting cyber attacks on these infrastructures and internet services.

They should focus on websites of networks run by media centres that fight Islam, Jihad, and the mujahideen. Commenting on the Al Qaueda video, U.

What actions should governments and enterprises take to prevent or mitigate cyberterrorism attacks?

As cyber terrorism is one the fastest growing threats, not only to individuals, public and private organisations, but to nations as a whole, we must ensure that the correct methods of prevention are being actioned. This involves both gathering preliminary reconnaissance on potential threats whilst managing current threats. The digital infrastructure each of our nations holds is under constant observation for vulnerabilities, thus cyber security professionals must be ready for an imminent threat from this act of terrorism. Drawing from what we have already discussed in this report, in order for us to look into the current and future measures to take, it would be productive to consider the following pertinent questions: What do we foresee terrorists wanting to do in cyberspace?

How can we prevent these actions? How can we be proactive against these actions? This being that terrorists look to utilise cyberspace in order to: Support their motivation, whether that be their religious, social, cultural, political or economical beliefs 2. Attack critical infrastructures and services in society 3.

We must be reasonable in assuming the potential threats discussed thus far in this report can be actioned at any time, without warning. When discussing acts of terrorism in general, the responsibility of prevention normally falls to governments and national organisations. These services cover investigations into acts of cyber terrorism, analysis and surveillance of potential threats.

Moreover, the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure also addresses its work with organisations that support the United Kingdoms digital infrastructure such as that discussed in section 3. The intention of this is to greatly improve communication between both government bodies and private organisations, in order to strengthen our networks against cyber attacks. Five year spending review of the government program to improve the National Cyber Security Strategy. An example being, The Internet of Things IoT devices, which have been widely discussed in the past few years due to this issue.

Reporter Lucian Constantin cites that: Thus, a valuable method of developing prevention against cyber terrorist threats before they could happen, is by implementing security as one of the integral parts of development in softwares and devices.

Cyberterrorists targeting healthcare systems, critical infrastructure

Whilst our government has many deterrents for those committing cyber attacks, the probability of getting caught is often in the minds of criminals, it could be said that for terrorist and terrorist organisations this is not a concern. As a result, when discussing prevention methods against cyber terrorism as appose to that of cyber crime, the methods must be considered differently due to the perspective of the attacker.

Often terrorist have no legislation to follow and are not concerned with the consequences of identification before or during an attack. Concluding that it is of vital importance for preliminary reconnaissance, defence and action to identify attackers is made in the swiftest of nature. Intrusion detection is one of the most active areas of research within cyber terrorism over the past 20 years SANS Institute, Creating safe barriers, both within our systems and physically, are necessary in order to identify occurring attacks in order to implement the right method of mitigation.

Many of these techniques, as previously discussed, include the likes of encryption. Passwords, could be seen as one of the oldest methods of intrusion detection. As these methods get more widely used, vulnerabilities become more common. Not only does this improve the mitigation, but it also allows for a compartmentalisation of a system to allow for a limitation of possible damage and thus protecting valued assets before irreparable damage occurs.

Additionally, responses to cyber attacks can be improved by focusing more attention on preserving data during an attack. As discussed by many security professionals across the globe, often data breaches are not recently backed up, thus it is vital to have up to date versions of systems or databases at all times. Limiting the amount of damage caused after a cyber attack is an essential part of incident management.

This is a primary stage of recovering and responding to an act of cyber terrorism and enables for future protections. Conclusion and suggestions moving forward One of the largest conclusions to convey from this report is the importance that cyber terrorism must be considered as an imminent threat at all times. Terrorists hide within our society until they action an attack.

When we discuss terrorism, this accounts for space both physically and digitally. Each and every terrorist has specific motivations that they wish to convey by inflicting harm, shown in section 3. This must always be considered when looking for potential attacks, like the potential threats to Industrial Control Systems discussed in section 3.

It is important that counter terrorism methods use this exposure to their advantage. Understanding where cyber terrorism may occur and developing a proactive response to potential threats is essential. We have learnt that whilst a cyber attack can be actioned at any time or place, developing the methods for identifying and tracing terrorist is of vital importance in each an every jurisdictions.

This may involve the likes of surveillance, tightening cyber crime laws or developing technology to detect intrusions to systems. Whilst the prevention of cyber terrorism, examined in section 4, is one of the largest concerns for our government, as it is evidently being developed further, the following suggestions are made to aid in improving the response of cyber threats: This is particularly emphasised for Industrial Control Systems.

Understanding the importance of developing and improving identification technologies, with a particular focus on gathering preliminary reconnaissance on cyber threat intelligence. Methods that could be considered or expanded include the likes of data mining and machine learning to predict potential attacks. Providing a greater amount of education to private and public sector organisations that are developing technologies used that may be at risk from cyber terrorism. Retrieved 25 April , from https: Retrieved 24 April , from http: Cyber threats 1st ed.

IoT devices are not designed with security in mind. Retrieved 25 April , from http: Activism, Hacktivism, and Cyberterrorism: Cultural, Social, Economic, and Political. The nature of its history. Criminal Justice Studies, 16 1 , 39— They did, however, weaken the Georgian government during a critical phase of the conflict. They also impacted on its ability to communicate with a very shocked national and global public. As if such reports were not threatening enough, the Stuxnet worm that appeared in pointed to a further qualitative quantum leap in destructive cyber war capabilities.

In the summer of , news spread that approximately 45, industrial Siemens control systems worldwide had been infected by a tailored trojan virus that could manipulate technical processes critical to nuclear power plants in Iran. Although the damage assessment still remains unclear, this showed the potential risk of malware affecting critical computer systems managing energy supplies or traffic networks.

cyberterrorism

For the first time, here was proof of cyber attacks potentially causing real physical damage and risking human lives. So far, the most dangerous actors in the cyber-domain are still nation-states. Despite a growing availability of offensive capabilities in criminal networks that might in future be used also by non-state actors like terrorists, highly sophisticated espionage and sabotage in the cyber-domain still needs the capabilities, determination and cost-benefit-rationale of a nation state. Physical damage and real kinetic cyber-terrorism has not taken place yet. But the technology of cyber-attacks is clearly evolving from a mere nuisance to a serious threat against information security and even critical national infrastructure.

There can be no doubt that some nations are already investing massively in cyber capabilities that can be used for military purposes. At first glance, the digital arms race is based on clear and inescapable logic, since the cyber warfare domain offers numerous advantages: Furthermore, there is virtually no effective deterrence in cyber warfare since even identifying the attacker is extremely difficult and, adhering to international law, probably nearly impossible. Under these circumstances, any form of military retaliation would be highly problematic, in both legal and political terms.

Unpacking Cyber Terrorism

The cyber-defence capabilities are equally evolving and most Western nations have considerably stepped up their defences in recent years. On the other hand, however, the cyber-defence capabilities are equally evolving and most Western nations have considerably stepped up their defences in recent years.


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Good cyber defence does make these threats manageable, to the extent that residual risks seem largely acceptable, similar to classic threats. The risks of cyber-attacks are very real and growing bigger. At the same time, there is no reason to panic, since for the foreseeable future these threats will neither be apocalyptic nor completely unmanageable. In the years following however, the Alliance concentrated primarily on implementing the passive protection measures that had been called for by the military side. Only the events in Estonia in the spring of prompted the Alliance to radically rethink its need for a cyber defence policy and to push its counter-measures to a new level.

This constituted a qualitative step forward. It had developed its first cyber defence mechanisms and capabilities, an drawn up an initial Cyber Defence Policy.

Cyberterrorism - Wikipedia

With the Lisbon decisions in November , the Alliance then successfully laid the foundations for a self-directed, factual examination of the issue. In doing so, NATO is not only giving existing structures like the NATO Computer Incident Response Capability a much-needed update, but also beginning to jointly, as an alliance, face up to very real and growing cyber defence challenges. Furthermore, the new policy - and the Action Plan for its implementation - provides NATO nations with clear guidelines and an agreed list of priorities on how to bring the Alliance's cyber defence forward, including enhanced coordination within NATO as well as with its partners.

By doing so, the Alliance is proving again that it is up to the task. He writes here in a personal capacity. Previous Editions Last editions. Smart Defence Smart Defence: NATO Review online magazine looks at key security issues through the eyes of the experts. Submission policy Copyright Editorial team. NATO ten years after: Afghanistan versus Afghanistan This is also almost the same description of cyber threats.

Evolution of the Cyber Threat.