International Cyber Terrorism

One cyber warfare scenario, Cyber ShockWave, which was wargamed on the cabinet
level by former administration officials, raised issues ranging from the National Guard to
the power grid to the limits of statutory authority.
The distributed nature of internet based attacks means that it is difficult to determine
motivation and attacking party, meaning that it is unclear when a specific act should be
considered an act of war.
Examples of cyberwarfare driven by political motivations can be found worldwide. In
2008, Russia began a cyber attack on the Georgian government website, which was
carried out along with Georgian military operations in South Ossetia. In 2008, Chinese
'nationalist hackers' attacked CNN as it reported on Chinese repression on Tibet.
Jobs in cyberwarfare have become increasingly popular in the military. All four branches
of the United States military actively recruit for cyber warfare positions.
Civil
Potential targets in internet sabotage include all aspects of the Internet from
the backbones of the web, to the internet service providers, to the varying types of data
communication mediums and network equipment. This would include: web servers,
enterprise information systems, client server systems, communication links, network
equipment, and the desktops and laptops in businesses and homes. Electrical grids,
financial networks, and telecommunication systems are also deemed vulnerable,
especially due to current trends in computerization and automation.
Hacktivism
Politically motivated hacktivism involves the subversive use of computers and computer
networks to promote an agenda, and can potentially extend to attacks, theft and virtual
sabotage that could be seen as cyberwarfare – or mistaken for it. Hacktivists use their
knowledge and software tools to gain unauthorized access to computer systems they
seek to manipulate or damage not for material gain or to cause widespread destruction,
but to draw attention to their cause through well-publicized disruptions of select targets.
Anonymous and other hacktivist groups are often portrayed in the media as cyberterrorists,
wreaking havoc by hacking websites, posting sensitive information about their
victims, and threatening further attacks if their demands are not met. However,
hacktivism is more than that. They are politically motivated to change the world, through
the use of fundamentalism. Groups like Anonymous have divided opinion with their
methods.
Private Sector
Computer hacking represents a modern threat in ongoing global conflicts and industrial
espionage and as such is presumed to widely occur. It is typical that this type of crime is
underreported to the extent they are known. According to McAfee's George Kurtz,
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