Attacks on national security through the use of Internet and computers Research Paper

Attacks on national security through the use of Internet and computers - Research Paper Example America like countries are currently tightening security measures against information warfare. Information warfare (IW) is normally classified into two groups; IW without using physical force during peace time and IW with physical force during military wars. Now the important question is whether information warfare without physical force can be labelled as warfare or not. This paper tries to answer this question. Approximately two years ago, IW was used to disrupt the transfer of money from one arm of a Middle Eastern terrorist group to another. This terrorist financiers bank account was covertly broken into and the money was diverted. In a similar move at the beginning of the Kosovo conflict, methods were discussed and approved to put pressure on President Milosevic; these included tampering with or breaking into his bank accounts and disrupting his personal communications (Church, 2000). From the above details, it is evident that IW can be used to cause immense economic damage to a country even during peace time. As mentioned earlier, it is difficult for the victim country to identify the source of attack and take preventive measures against cyber-attacks or IW. Computer networks are connected globally and it is easy for advanced countries to attack enemy targets without causing any human casualties. Trained computer professionals can break all the firewalls and cause immense financial damages in the enemy countries. Even though there are plenty of international laws against military wars, these laws are inapplicable in the case of IW. In other words, the present cyber laws are incapable to handle anonymous attacks. Cyber warfare will involve disruption of crucial network services and data, damage to critical infrastructure, and the creation of uncertainty and doubt among opposing commanders and political leaders. Cyber-attack provides an ability to strike both tactical and strategic targets from a distance using inexpensive