cyber espionage

LAST ISSUE -CYBER ESPIONAGE

Businesses and government agencies in many countries experienced a spike in targeted attacks originating outside their borders, many from China and/or Russia. Analysis of the attacks leads security experts to believe that many governments are involved in cyber espionage. Cyber espionage is the use of the Internet to spy on other governments. Not only is the Internet being leveraged for international espionage, but it is also being used for economic espionage. Economic espionage refers to the use of the Internet by nation-states to steal corporate information in an effort to gain economic advantages in multinational deals.

One report describes how Chinese hackers infected the Rolls Royce corporate network with a Trojan horse that sent secret corporate information from the network to a remote server. Shell Oil Company discovered a Chinese cyber spy ring in Houston, Texas, working to steal confidential pricing information from servers at its operation in Africa.

Although it would be easy to jump to the conclusion that the Chinese government is behind all of these attacks, experts are quick to point out that it is difficult to pinpoint the origin of an attack. The Internet makes it possible for hackers to launch attacks from any server in the world. If an attack originates in China and is engineered by a Chinese citizen, it still cannot be determined if that person is working for the government. The Chinese government vehemently denies any part in cyber espionage. Still, most governments hold the Chinese government accountable for not cracking down on hackers if not actually sponsoring them. It is estimated that 30 percent of malicious software is created in China. The next largest distributor of malware is Russia and Eastern Europe.

A report developed by security firm McAfee states that “120 countries are developing ways to use the Internet as a weapon to target financial markets, government computer systems, and utilities.” A number of experts are calling this the “cyber cold war.”

The Internet of Things may become the Internet of Threats!

Questions:

1. Why are countries and businesses concerned about cyber espionage that originates in China and Russia?

2. What are the dangers if the cyber cold war turns into an actual cyber war?

3. Find a recent article concerning Hacking or Cyber espionage. Recap the article. Then create your own question and answer from the content.