Fergie's Tech Blog

Cyber Breaches: Worse Than You Think

Jill R. Aitoro writes on the NextGov.com "Tech Insider" Blog:

It may seem as if a new breach of some computer system or network is reported every couple of months; but actually, one security expert says it's worse than that.

According to James Lewis, director of the technology and public policy program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, reports of about 17 significant security incidents were released in the last two years - which averages to one report every 6 weeks.

The list isn't perfect. One report that made the list was released in November 2008, but focuses on a cyber intrusion that occurred in 2005, for example. Still, Lewis argues that a collective list of all breaches that occurred would be far longer -- particularly if you included the countless smaller targets than government. What this instead represents is the collective failures of governments around the world to properly respond to a growing threat.

"If Chinese or Russian spies backed a truck up to the State Department, smashed the glass doors, tied up the guards and spent the night carting off file cabinets it would be an act of war," Lewis said, "but when it happens in cyberspace, we barely notice."

posted by Fergie @ 5/06/2009 03:55:00 PM