We are at war. If you don’t believe me, just ask our adversaries.

Without firing a shot, our enemies have infiltrated the best protected military facilities in the world. Despite millions of dollars freely flowing into our nation’s Cyber-Defense efforts, we continue to let the bad guys in through the back door. How? Because we let them!
The weakest link in our overall defense is the human element - ourselves. Our adversaries know this and continue to successfully exploit this weakness with unbelievable ease. Firewalls, proxy servers and complex passwords can not stop users from opening unsolicited messages. These messages often contain a carefully crafted attachment requiring some type of action on the recipient’s behalf.

Although many attachment types appear to be benign in nature, they have the ability to carry a deadly payload. Any file type, no matter what you think you know, can be manipulated into a Cyber-Weapon. Our adversaries have proven this time and time again. Although anti-virus companies work closely with government entities to identify and protect against these threats, it takes time to identify the attack, determine the attack type and develop the necessary signatures for immunization.

So why do our adversaries spend so much time and money on these Cyber-attacks? First of all, it’s much cheaper to steal our military programs than to develop their own. Just look at the Russian military hardware over the years: The Chinese C-17 (aka Y-20) and the new Russian F-22 (aka T-50) come to mind. Second, a foreign country can use this information to develop their national policy. I’m sure the Chinese would love to know how we would react to an invasion of Taiwan! Third, the enemy can gather intelligence on our troop strength and deployments. Doing so allows our enemy to better structure their offensive capabilities and plan attacks, such as IED’s in the Middle East.

Prior to military invasion in 2008, Russia launched a directed Cyber attack against the country of Georgia, effectively blinding their defenses. This should serve as a wake-up call to our country’s leaders, as our military heavily depends on both network and internet connectivity to execute complex missions around the world. E-Mail and internet access in no longer a luxury; it is a necessity. Without this access, we are combat-ineffective as a nation, as our technological advantage is taken away. Everything from food to fuels to ammunition and pay rely on our ability to communicate. With few exceptions, there is very little in the way of back-up systems.

The technological advantage at our disposal can be compromised by a single user opening a single E-Mail containing a single attachment. Although our military machine has made huge strides in regard to Cyber-Defense, our back door remains wide open. As a free society, we continue to balance the convenience of the computer with the needs of security; this is not enough to win the war in Cyber-Space.
Until we begin treating our networks and our users are weapons systems, we will remain vulnerable to attack. No amount of money or equipment can ever take the place of Education, Awareness and Vigilance. Until we change our focus as a modern military, the real threat comes from within.

LibNOTSr wonders, is it too late? Please see the recent article posted here, “Finally, US Cybersecurity Gets Much Needed Attention.”
Photos: Russian Sukhoi T-50 (stealth enabled) Fifth Generation Fighter and the US F-22 (no longer funded by Congress). The Chinese Y-20 and US C-17 are below.

NOTE: This article was derived from open-source material.
BG

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This article was exclusively provided to www.libnot.com
The author, Brock Grisham, a pseudonym, is a long time, trusted friend of libNOTSr.
Brock is a Senior IT Security Manager. He served as a US Army Ranger under the Special Operations Command in the 90’s. He enjoys spending time with his wife and young daughter, collecting firearms and computers.

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