Reports have recently made it into the public domain that back in May of 2007 President George W. Bush authorized the National Security Agency (NSA) to launch a sophisticated cyber attack on the cellular phones and computers of insurgents in Iraq. This cyber attack created the ability for U.S. forces to plant false information that lead to the deception of insurgents. Multiple senior level officials have reportedly told media sources that this attack helped turn the tide of the war in Iraq.
Coincidently enough two senior officials (Mike McConnell -- NSA and Army General David Petraeus -- Commander of allied forces in Iraq) with significant experience and cyber warfare knowledge that understood the capabilities of cyber weapons were placed in top military and intelligence positions.
The mission of Cyber Command is to protect and defend the U.S. military's information assets, networks and systems, as well as to stand ready to conduct offensive cyber attack operations against our adversaries. Inside sources say that Cyber Command has almost finalized their cyber warfare doctrine and cyber operational plans based on the experience and knowledge of the intelligence agencies as well as other military leaders.
FACT: The first information warfare center at the NSA was established in the mid 90s.
FACT: Each year, DoD graduates approximately 100 students from a special program devoted solely to cyber warfare.
One glimpse into cyber operations has already leaked out. For the last few month rumors have persisted about special cyber units, referred to as "Cyber Seal Teams," that are deployed on foreign soil and actively compromising networks and systems to gather intelligence and more. You can be sure our enemies are building or already have these same type of cyber units.
While U.S. military and intelligence organizations have taken aggressive steps to address the threat of cyber attack, according to Congressman Jim Langevin, who chaired a subcommittee on cyber security, found that almost nothing has been done to protect the U.S. Power Grid. Someone or some organization needs to take or be given ownership of protecting our critical infrastructure, not just the power grid, from cyber attacks. They also need to be held accountable and monitored.
