Historically, our collective image and understanding of war has been shaped by the photos and videos broadcast across various media platforms. Whether it be television coverage of the fighting in Vietnam or archival photos of the invasion of Normandy, war is understood to be a bloody and deadly affair. While the wars in the Ukraine, Sudan, and Gaza are stark reminders of how desperate frontline combat can be, war in the 21st century is often virtual. Instead of AR-15-style rifles and roadside bombs, computers and the internet are increasingly becoming the weapon of choice in the form of cyber-attacks and cyberterrorism.
By all accounts, the word “cyberterrorism” was initially used by security expert Barry Collins in the 1980s. Interestingly though, the first example of a cyber attack took place in France in 1834. This incident involved attackers using the telegraph system to steal information about the French financial market. Needless to say, the nefarious actions associated with cyberterrorism have gotten significantly more sophisticated. Modern-day cyberwarfare involves the use of computers to incite fear in a population. These types of attacks have been perpetrated against countries and corporations alike, and are generally politically or financially motivated. Examples include the 2010 Stuxnet worm that was used against the nuclear power plants in Iran, and the 2022 attack against the ride-sharing company Uber, which resulted in hackers having near total control of all of Uber’s virtual systems. Estimates are that the cost of cyber attacks will reach over $10 trillion globally by 2025.
The fears associated with cybercrime exist politically, economically, and psychologically all at the same time. This is because this behavior not only occurs outside the bounds of agreed-upon behavior, it is also unpredictable and can happen anytime, disrupting lives and livelihoods. While we assume that rogue actors with an axe to grind, like the “hacktivist” group Anonymous, are the primary perpetrators, increasingly, nation states are using technology to target corporations and other nations. North Korea sponsored Lazarus Group’s attack against Sony in 2014 over the movie The Interview, damaging Sony to the tune of $15 million. The Russian government’s hacking group known as “Sandworm,” has been identified as the source of ongoing attacks against Ukrainian power plants. Even the National Security Agency (NSA), a wing of the U.S. government, uses cyber through its “Tailored Access Operation” program to attack its enemies both stated and otherwise.
Attacks in the U.S. have not been limited to corporations like Uber, Sony, or Target, which in 2014 had the credit card information of 40 million customers hacked, resulting in over $200 million in damages. A 2022 “Cyber Security Advisory” issued by governments in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand warned that Russia was aggressively working to disrupt the infrastructure of these countries. In the U.S., this included attacks against power plants, water treatment facilities, healthcare facilities, and financial institutions. The impact of these attacks cost the state of New York alone over $775 million. One only has to remember the nightmare of the 2003 blackout when the Northeast power grid in the U.S. shut down or the Texas power grid failure during the deep freeze of 2021 that resulted in 57 deaths, to imagine the terrifying scenarios that could emerge if cyberterrorism were to knock the whole country offline.
While technology has greatly improved the quality of modern life (and nobody wants to go back to using the telegraph) it has also resulted in unforeseen vulnerability. While the combat associated with land battles won’t ever go away, the battlefield of the future will increasingly be virtual. The questions we are left with are twofold. First, when will it happen? Keeping millions of citizens in a country safe from cyberterrorism is a massive undertaking in which the “good guys” have to be right all the time, and the “bad guys” only have to get it right once. Second, and most importantly, can we do anything to protect ourselves, or is it already a lost cause? Only with time will we know the answers, but unfortunately, if the terrorists are successful, we might not be able to share that knowledge.
Thompson is a co-owner of UITAC Publishing. UITAC’s mission is to provide high-quality, affordable, and socially responsible online course materials.
Images used in this blog:
- “Terrorism” by Nick Youngson is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. This image has not been altered.
- “Anonymous Hacker Working Wallpaper” from com is licensed under the CC BY-SA 4.0. This image has not been altered.
