[Infowarrior] - The Dogs of Web War

[Richard Forno]

January 2008, Vol. 91, No. 1

US armed forces face ³peer² adversaries in only one area‹military
cyberspace.
The Dogs of Web War
By Rebecca Grant

After years of claims and counterclaims concerning the severity of national
security threats in cyberspace, the picture is at last starting to become
clear. Recent jousting within cyberspace has provided clues about what to
expect from combat in this new domain.

For example, China has been positively identified as a source of
³campaign-style² cyber attacks on Department of Defense systems. Russia,
moreover, is the prime suspect in last spring¹s notorious cyber assault on
Estonia.

Outside the military realm, too, cyber attacks are forming a persistent
threat to aerospace enterprises and other parts of the US industrial base.

More than ever before, cyberspace is on the minds of America¹s top leaders.
Air Force Gen. Kevin P. Chilton, the new head of US Strategic Command, said
during his confirmation hearing that ³attacks impacting our freedom to
operate in space and cyberspace pose serious strategic threats.²

Defending the nation from cyberspace attacks is STRATCOM¹s mission‹but one
of the big challenges is assessing the strategic threat and demarcating
lines of response.

It all begins with knowing the adversary. China is at the top of most lists
of nations with advanced cyber capability‹and the will to use it.

Because of the overall tenor of military competition with China, every
report of Chinese activity raises hackles. In fact, there¹s been a steady
level of reported skirmishing in cyberspace this decade.

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