Two Events --A Hack and Stuxnet-- Are there any Solutions?

Amagines ^ | 07/12/2011 | STEPHEN BRYEN

[Ooh-Ah]

Two "events" caught my attention today. One was something that just happened; the other was more about the infamous Stuxnet worm. I am not sure I have good answers to both these events, but I have some ideas, and I think we need to think together about solutions.

Let's start with the event that just happened.

According to Information Week, "Hacktivist group AntiSec started the week with yet another intrusion on a government contractor, this time targeting Booz Allen Hamilton and posting what it claims are 90,000 military email addresses and passwords from the contractor online."

I took a look at the AntiSec hack, and in fact there you can see the military email addresses and their passwords.

Now some will say that maybe AntiSec has done a favor by showing up the vulnerabilities of the Booz Allen computer network, so now they will fix it. But certainly no favor was done, in fact much damage was done, to key people who dedicate their lives to protecting our country. Now their emails, family information, sensitive assignments and all kinds of other information can be attacked by enemies of the United States, whether they are terrorists or hostile regimes. It puts our military folks at risk, endangers their families, and surrenders vitally important information to the "bad guys."

The second event was a very detailed, in fact, brilliant article in Wired Magazine called " How digital detectives deciphered Stuxnet, the most menacing malware in history." The article explains many of the intricacies of the Stuxnet worm. Is that so bad? Well here is my worry.

It is very clear that the Stuxnet worm was designed by someone to stop Iran from making nuclear bombs. It is the official policy of the United States to oppose Iran's efforts to make nuclear weapons, because a nuclear-armed radical Iran could unleash a nuclear war, kill millions of people, and potentially lead to a holocaust for mankind.

So why is it such a good idea to expose how Stuxnet works and make it easier for the Iranian regime to find ways around the worm and produce nuclear materials for bombs?

The article makes it clear that Stuxnet was designed to kill Iran's centrifuges. I frankly don't understand how it can be described by Wired as the "most menacing malware in history..." It seems to me maybe it was the best malware in history.

This leads to a couple of questions --

Firstly, why would anything AntiSec posts be allowed to stay on the Internet for even a second. Shouldn't our government immediately move to wipe out these posts before people are hurt. If a man with a gun is walking around threatening your neighborhood, don't the police arrest him right away? Isn't this the same, but worse?

Secondly, why should technical writers be running around giving away vital information that affects our national security? Why does the government just sit on its hands when so much is at stake?

STEPHEN BRYEN served as the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Trade Security Policy in the Reagan administration.

[himno hero]

Shouldn’t our government immediately move to wipe out these posts before people are hurt. If a man with a gun is walking around threatening your neighborhood, don’t the police arrest him right away? Isn’t this the same, but worse?

“This aint America no more”. We were told that already two years ago.

[mountainlion]

Makes it look like Boama may have had a hand in things.

[himno hero]

Makes it look like?

Understatement.... him and his crew have been preparing for years. Now he is in the seat and the wrecking crew is attacking America at every level. The MB is operating full tilt in the ME now, with his involvement and support of America.

If we don’t act, we are in for a very shiddy ride.

[TChad]

why would anything AntiSec posts be allowed to stay on the Internet for even a second.

Perhaps because the United States does not control every Internet server in the world. Any Internet data downloaded by a few people can be quickly uploaded to servers anywhere on the planet for redistribution. This is just the way the Internet currently works. After information is published to the Internet, it should thenceforth be presumed to be permanently available to the public.