Hackers shifting from ‘disruption’ to ‘destruction’: U.S. cyber chief****
By Agence France-Presse**** http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/10/01/hackers-shifting-from-disruption-to-destruction-u-s-cyber-chief/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheRawStory+%28The+Raw+Story%9&utm_content=Google+Reader<http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/10/01/hackers-shifting-from-disruption-to-destruction-u-s-cyber-chief/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheRawStory+%28The+Raw+Story%259&utm_content=Google+Reader> **** ** ** ** ** WASHINGTON - Hackers are stepping up the intensity of their attacks, moving* *** from “disruption” to “destruction” of key computer systems, the top US**** cyber-defense official said Monday.**** ** ** General Keith Alexander, who is director of the National Security Agency and **** commander of the US Cyber Command, told a Washington forum that the new**** tactics could move beyond mere annoyances and begin causing severe economic* *** damage.**** ** ** “We are seeing the threat grow from exploitation to disruption to**** destruction,” he told the group at the Woodrow Wilson Center.**** ** ** He argued that these attacks could impact organizations ranging from stock** ** markets to power grid operators - “all of that is in the realm of the**** possible.”**** ** ** These types of destructive attacks can wipe out data, which could bankrupt a **** company or disable the control systems operating key infrastructure.**** ** ** “It could overwrite the ability of a system to turn on,” Alexander said.**** ** ** “Think about a company that loses all the data on its system… If you wipe*** * out the data, you wipe out the ability of the system to operate.”**** ** ** Alexander said the best way to protect against these types of attacks is to* *** implement an information sharing system between the private sector and**** government agencies - as was proposed in cybersecurity legislation that**** failed this year in Congress.**** ** ** Such legislation could include mandatory or voluntary reporting guidelines** ** for when attacks occur, and it could allow those reporting the incidents to* *** be immune from liability.**** ** ** Senator Susan Collins, a sponsor of the failed cybersecurity bill, told the* *** same forum the need for new laws remains high.**** ** ** “I hope we don’t have to wait for a ‘cyber 9/11′ for action to happen,”**** she said. “These problems are not going to go away.”**** ** ** Both Collins and Alexander said, despite news the White House is considering **** an executive order, the legal framework for cybersecurity protection must*** * come from legislation.**** ** ** Collins said she told President Barack Obama that an executive order would** ** be “a big mistake” and “cannot accomplish what legislation can.”**** ** ** She added that an executive order “could lull people into a false sense of** ** security.”**** ** ** The two spoke the same day the White House acknowledged that one of its own* *** computer networks was hit by a cyber attack, but said no classified systems* *** were breached and there was no indication any data was lost.**** ** ** An administration official spoke up after a report from a right-wing news*** * site that Chinese hackers had breached a key White House military system.*** * ** ** The US official said the attack was against “an unclassified network” and*** * was a case of “spear phishing,” in which a spoofed email tricks a user**** into clicking through to a website where a hacker can install malicious**** software or gain control of another computer.**** ** ** “These types of attacks are not infrequent, and we have mitigation measures* *** in place,” the official said.**** ** ** ==========================================**** (F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this **** message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to* *** these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed **** within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with**** "Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. **** The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The**** Copyright Act of 1976. "Fair Use" legally eliminates the need to obtain**** permission or pay royalties for the use of previously copyrighted materials* *** if the purposes of display include "criticism, comment, news reporting,**** teaching, scholarship, and research." Section 107 establishes four criteria* *** for determining whether the use of a work in any particular case qualifies** ** as a "fair use". A work used does not necessarily have to satisfy all four** ** criteria to qualify as an instance of "fair use". Rather, "fair use" is**** determined by the overall extent to which the cited work does or does not*** * substantially satisfy the criteria in their totality. If you wish to use**** copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you **** must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: **** http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml**** ** ** THIS DOCUMENT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS **** PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS.**** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
