Cyber: The new No. 1 threat
Kevin G. Coleman, SilverRhino 4:32 p.m. EST February 8, 2016
http://www.c4isrnet.com/story/military-tech/blog/net-defense/2016/02/08/cyber-new-no-1-threat/80014956/James Clapper, the director of National Intelligence, recently surprised some by stating cyberattacks are now the No. 1 threat against the United States. He blamed criminal organizations and politically motivated entities for launching attacks that target government and private computer systems and networks within the United States. That shocked many who believed traditional terrorism was the number 1 threat.
Clapper was not the only one warning about the increasing threat of cyberattacks. At Davos 2016 in Switzerland, the World Economic Forum focused on three specific cyber topics. The first was the warning that cyberattacks against critical infrastructure are imminent and that attacks would disrupt these services. The second topic focused on the need for governments and the private sector to work together much more closely to combat this growing threat. The third topic area was the criticality of resilience.
We should also keep in mind FBI Director James Comey's recent warning issued about the growing threat of intellectual property theft within the United States.
Only a few people really understand the true level of this threat and the unique difficulties that accompany the ever-changing nature of cyberattacks. The scope of the attack surface—computers, tablets, smartphones and devices connected to the Internet of Things—is massive. Another challenging aspect is the magnitude of change. According to Symantec, during December 2015 there were more than 22 million new strains of malware introduced into the online environment. That equates to about 500 every minute.
Symantec also reported that in December 2015 one in four emails sent contained malware.
All of this is further stressing the cyber resources that are scarce to begin with, and increasing the losses attributed to cyberattacks. How will this threat be addressed?
