Countries around the world have awoken to the risks of cyber attacks on their systems launched by criminals, hacktivists, terrorists and rogue nation states.
As of January 2012, we found twenty-two countries have established cyber defense centers in an effort to enhance both their offense, defensive and cyber intelligence capabilities. Keep reading →
The risks from cyber attacks are not new. In fact, they’ve been around for about two decades. Warnings about the national security threat from cyber attacks are not new either.
What is new is the harsh tone of the warning messages that have been released lately. Keep reading →
It is hard not to notice the increase in activity and public information about cyber threats that has been in the media lately.
That concern was borne out by testimony during a Feb. 2 hearing in which the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Republican Mike Rogers of Michigan, warned of the severe consequences of a cyber attack on the United States. Keep reading →
Two separate but related events took place in recent days that individually were important moments in the rapid evolution of the cyber threat domain. When you combine these two events, clearly you can see their significance.
Both events serve as strong indicators of the concern over cyber attacks, as well as a barometer for the current state of digital conflict. Keep reading →
In recent years, Joint Special Operations Forces (JSOF) around the world have experienced a fair amount of growth. This growth has resulted in a rapid increase in their ranks, a boost in their budgets and an expansion of the scope of their missions.
This growth was further accelerated by the widely publicized Special Operations Forces that were used in the killing of Osama bin Laden. In a press conference from the Pentagon President Obama with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta articulated their vision of the future military.
The new vision states that “we will continue to build and sustain tailored capabilities appropriate for counter terrorism and irregular warfare.” That vision, which was reinforced in a blog post by Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, means growth for JSOF, but does that mean growth into cyber?
Secretary of Defense Panetta made it clear that the Defense Department must invest more in cyber capabilities saying, “Modern armed forces cannot conduct high-tempo, effective operations without reliable information and communication networks and assured access to cyberspace.”
While he did not mention offensive cyber capabilities you can be sure that is a critical capability that will see additional investment.
What if cyber becomes an increased focus and capability of our JSOFs?
As a general principal, our military must protect critical cyber assets while attacking the enemy’s cyber capabilities. Integrating cyber with JSOFs makes allot of sense and will only increase the weaponry and ultimately the value they provide.
Full integration of cyberspace operations into the traditional air-land-sea battle space is not an option! The covert missions carried out by JSOF are among the riskiest and are of the greatest value in the pursuit of national security.
A Joint Special Cyber Operations capability is not an option. Rather, it is a necessity in the highly contested domain of cyber space.
It was bound to happen and it appears it has just begun – cyber burn-out.
Recently a few security professional expressed symptoms that are associated with burn-out. This type of attitude is so uncharacteristic of these individuals. They are talking about, and more importantly, exhibiting the depletion and drain of professional drive. Keep reading →
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has reiterated the military’s going-forward strategy on many occasions, saying about our military’s direction: “It must be complemented by the full range of America’s national security capabilities – strong intelligence, strong diplomacy, a strong economy, strong technology, developments in cyber capabilities.” These five areas comprise the new defense strategy.
Last week the web was all abuzz with coverage of President Obama’s press conference at the Pentagon along with Defense Secretary Panetta and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Martin Dempsey as they unveiled the administration’s new military strategy. It is clear the U.S. military will undergo dramatic changes due to budget cuts. Keep reading →
A relatively new report on the extent to which foreign spies are stealing U.S. economic secrets is gaining attention not only for what it concludes but also for the fact that it actually names names.
The report comes by way of the Office of the National Counter Intelligence Executive and is titled Report to Congress on Foreign Economic Collection and Industrial Espionage, 2009 – 2011. Keep reading →
The European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) just released a new study this month that looks at protecting the security of industrial control (or SCADA) systems (ICS).
The study recognizes that industrial control systems are truly a strategic asset and must be protected against the rising potential of cyber terrorist attacks with Keep reading →
It is getting to the point that those reporting acts of cyber aggression, particularly in the area of cyber espionage, think they are in a repetitive do-loop. It is the same story over and over again with the only difference being the list of victims.
The news of late has been the discovery of yet another sophisticated cyber attack that resulted in the collection of untold information, some general some sensitive, from the business community as well as defense contractors and government officials. Keep reading →