SubscribeCyberexercise shows need for better training to avoid major network failures
March 14, 2008
“Workers operating networks supporting the nation’s critical infrastructure such as telecommunications and transportation need better training on how to manage backup systems in case cyberattacks take down main systems, said a top Homeland Security Department official Thursday.” (GovExec)
Top Defense commander hints at taking offensive actions in space, cyberspace
March 13, 2008
“The chief of the Strategic Command hinted Wednesday during a Senate hearing that the Pentagon has plans to conduct warfare in space as well as in cyberspace, strategies the Defense Department has been reluctant to discuss openly in the past.
Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton, commander of the U.S. Strategic Command, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee that cyberspace has emerged as “a unique global domain in which the United States must maintain freedom of action.”" (GovExec)
Cyber Storm II gets started
March 11, 2008
“The private sector owns more than three-quarters of the country’s critical infrastructure. A large-scale, successful, coordinated attack could cripple the country’s economy. A cyberattack can originate in one country and pass through several others before reaching its target.” (Federal Computer Week)
Washington Prepares for Cyber War Games
March 7, 2008
“The U.S. government will conduct a series of cyber war games throughout next week to test its ability to recover from and respond to digital attacks.
Code-named ‘Cyber Storm II,’ this is the largest-ever exercise designed to evaluate the mettle of information technology experts and incident response teams from 18 federal agencies, including the CIA, Department of Defense, FBI, and NSA, as well as officials from nine states, including Delaware, Pennsylvania and Virginia. In addition, more than 40 companies will be playing, including Cisco Systems, Dow Chemical, McAfee, and Microsoft.” (Washington Post)
Navy develops two-way radio communication for submerged submarines
March 6, 2008
“The Navy has developed systems using floating radio antennas and buoys that will provide submerged submarines with two-way communications for the first time in history, a top official at the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center said at a news briefing on Tuesday.” (GovExec)
DHS: Real ID is ‘pro-consumer’ and ‘antiterrorism’
March 5, 2008
“One of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s most prominent Real ID cheerleaders made a more timid than usual push on Tuesday for states to adopt the controversial identification card standards.
Stewart Baker, the department’s assistant secretary for policy, has touted what he perceives as the privacy-protective, identity theft-preventive features of the congressionally mandated Real ID driver’s license regime during the past year” (CNET)
Users continue to compromise federal computer networks, says tech community
March 4, 2008
“More than half of government IT professionals know of violations in security protocols, according to a recent survey. Funding challenges hinder agencies’ ability to put proper security measures in place, while lack of systems and requirements standardization creates confusion in the market, said an industry official.” (GovExec)
OMB reports 60 percent increase in information security incidents
March 3, 2008
“The number of information security incidents reported by federal agencies jumped from 5,146 in fiscal 2006 to 12,986 last year, with a 70 percent increase in unauthorized access to federal networks alone, according to a report from the Office of Management released Saturday.” (GovExec)
Predicting terrorist activity
February 28, 2008
“Researchers at the University of Maryland’s Institute for Advanced Computer Studies announced this week that they have launched an online portal that will let analysts query rules on the behavior of terrorist organizations and forecast their future behavior.” (Government Computer News)
Cyber-Security: Ignore At Your Peril
February 28, 2008
“In the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, al-Qaida accomplished three goals: It caused a massive loss of life, it destroyed an icon of American prosperity and it wreaked havoc on Wall Street and the U.S. economy. Economic destruction continues to be a goal of terrorists and other bad actors, and cyber attacks are an increasingly popular and effective weapon.” (Forbes)