Introduction
In an age where most of the world is reliant on the Internet, certain groups feel that the new battlefield of the 21st century is not outer space, but cyberspace. Although “cyberwar” is an overused term, it seems that it is becoming a reality. This paper will cover details of the South Ossetia War between Russia and Georgia in 2008. The research will provide a background of the cyber-attack as a precursor to a physical invasion of Russia into Georgia. The paper will review the groups identified in the attacks and provide examination of the speculation of other perpetrators in the attack. In addition to the group involved, this paper will review the attack, what may have prompted the attack, and what the outcome of the attack was when the dust settled. Finally, we review some lessons learned through this attack, and how to prevent or at a minimum discourage attacks by similar aggressors in the future.
The 2008 South Ossetia War
Although this conflict lasted only nine days, the skirmish included something never documented in the history of contemporary combat. Looking at the stages of the war, this can be considered the first true occurrence of cyberwar. This attack included multiple attacks including hactivisim, Distributed Denial of Denial of Service (DDoS) attack, SQL Injections and other forms of connection redirection (Gjelten, 2010). These attacks all can be pointed to an elevated level of political agenda to protect a nations best interests in a region with erratic behavior.
The Threat Actors
Several theories surfaced regarding the cyber-attack against Georgia in 2008. Although these differ depending on the stance of the individual reviewing the situation, some details appear to show the apparent aggressor in t...
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The Battle of Kamdesh was fought in Afghanistan during the Afghan War. It is an occurrence in the ongoing NATO campaign of the Operation Enduring Freedom since the year 2001. It was one of the bloodiest battles the USA forces engaged in during this campaign against the Taliban insurgents. The Taliban insurgents, assisted by local Nuristan militias, attacked Kamdesh, which is an American combat outpost, located deep in the Nuristan tribal Areas. They carried out a well-coordinated attack on the outpost, leading to a breach and an overrun of the post. This paper, seeks to analyze why, when, how, and what were the resulting impact of the battle.
In the month of April 2004, in the city of Habbaniyah, Iraq, a brutal and terrible act took place which ignited one of the bloodiest battles in the history of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Four Black Water security members were killed and publicly maimed. The resulting battle left a high casualty rate as well as hundreds of American service members being wounded. This is the story of the events that took place after the events in the city of Habbaniyah. On the 31st of March, 2004, a convoy was attacked.
At this juncture, it may be somewhat difficult to accept the proposition that a threat to the telecommunications grid, both wired and wireless, in the United States could potentially be subject to a catastrophic cyber attack. After careful research on the subject, it appears the potentiality of an event of such magnitude, which either disrupts one or the other grids for a long period or destroys either, is both theoretically and realistically impossible. It may be that proponents—those who advance such theories—equate such “doomsday” scenarios as if a cyber attack would or could be of the same magnitude as a conventional or nuclear military strike. Terms such as “cyber Pearl Harbor,” “cyber 9/11” and “cyber Vietnam” have been used to describes potential catastrophic cyber attacks and yet, “Though many have posited notions on what a ‘real’ cyber war would be like, we lack the understanding of how such conflicts will be conducted and evolve.” (Rattray & Healey, 2010, p. 77). Yet, the U.S. government continues to focus on such events, as if the plausibility of small-scale cyber attacks were not as pressing.
The War of 1812- Causes of the War, “n.d.” http://www2.andrews.edu/~downm.causes.html (26 October 1999, 13 November 1999)
St John, John, Ronald Bruce. "Armenian Genocide." World Book Student. World Book, 2014. Web. 22 Mar. 2014.
With the introduction of the internet being a relatively new phenomenon, the act of cyber espionage is not something that has been properly acknowledged by society. The American Government has done a stand up job of keeping its methods in the shadows and away from the eyes of its people since its documented domestic surveillance began on October 4th, 2001; Twenty three days after the Twin Towers fell President George Bush signed an order to begin a secret domestic eavesdropping operation, an operation which was so sensitive that even many of the country's senior national security officials with the...
Petallides, C. J. (2012). "Cyber Terrorism and IR Theory: Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism in the New Security Threat." Student Pulse, Vol 4, No 3 Accessed online http://www.studentpulse.com/a?id=627> on 12/03/14
It is difficult to define cyberculture because its boundaries are uncertain and applications to certain circumstances can often be disputed. The common threads of defining cyberculture is a culture which has evolved and continues to evolve from the use of computer networks and the internet and is guided by social and cultural movements reflective of advancements in scientific and technological information. It is not a unified culture but rather a culture that exists in cyberspace and is a compilation of numerous new technologies and capabilities, used by diverse people in diverse real – world locations. Cyberculture, a twentieth century phenomenon, has brought challenges unlike any other that the United States has seen in the areas of cyber security and its impact on our most critical institutions. This presentation will focus on the aforementioned three entities where national security is in jeopardy, in part due to cyberculture and its intentional use for disruptive and destructive purposes.
The term “cyber terrorism” refers to the use of the Internet as a medium in which an attack can be launched such as hacking into electrical grids, security systems, and vital information networks. Over the past four decades, cyber terrorists have been using the Internet as an advanced communication tool in which to quickly spread and organize their members and resources. For instance, by using the instantaneous spread of information provided by the Internet, several terrorist’s groups have been able to quickly share information, coordinate attacks, spread propaganda, raise funds, and find new recruits for their cause. Instantaneous and unpredictable, the technological advantages these terrorists have obtained from using the Internet includes
Society has become ever-increasingly dependent upon technology, more specifically, computers to conduct personal and business transactions and communications. Consequently, criminals have targeted these systems to conduct information and cyber warfare, which can include politically motivated attacks and to profit through ill-gotten means. In an article written by Koblentz and Mazanec (2013), cyber warfare is the act of disabling an enemy’s ability to use or obtain information, degrade its ability to make decisions, and to command its military forces. Additionally, information warfare is composed of cyber warfare and related to the protection, disruption, destruction, denial, or manipulation of information in order to gain a benefit through the technologies (Taddeo, 2012). Accordingly, as technology becomes readily available to various entities, the ability to conduct or perform warfare through technological means is multiplying.
Haley, Jacqueline. "Anonymity of Cyberstalkers: The Cyber-Watchdog's Tough Collar." Georgia State University College of Law May 2001.
...communication technology have led to more dependency to internet connectivity. As world is changing into a global village cyber space has turned up the busiest and easily accessible market. Terrorists used this technique because it is very low cost, easy to manage or control and less chance to be apprehended. Terrorist easily achieve their goals by using this field of terrorism. Many states faced the menace of cyber terrorism which leads towards the disruption of their infrastructure, loss of data system jeopardizing their internal security and many more. Some states have taken strong measures against these attacks like US whose Department of Defense worked to tackle these threats. It is necessary that on international level states must cooperate with each other and promote those organizations which are formed only to stop the threat of cyber terrorism.
Unequivocally speaking, the threat of a cyber-attack has become one of the most critical domestic and national security challenges we face as a nation today. Infrastructures supporting government operations are ...
Olender, Michael. “Keeping Pace with Cyber Power, Defense, and Warfare.” Journal of International and Global Studies 6.2 (2015): 55+. Academic OneFile. Web. 5 Oct. 2015.
There are different groups, from law enforcement agencies to the U.S. Secret Service, that are attempting to combat the problem through cooperation and preemptive efforts. If these groups combined with the public to protect themselves and the country from criminals that commit cybercrime, the nation’s network and technology servers would be much safer for technology users. Clearly, cybercrime is a problem because it puts internet users at risk of being taken advantage of or harmed. The advantages of technology and the internet have led more criminals to use cyberspace to commit crimes. The threat of cybercrime is increasing as globalization continues to spread across the world.