Cyberterrorism

Terrorism is an act of sheer cruelty. It is something to be angry about, to be ashamed of and fight against. It needs to be uprooted from society. Terrorism has started hovering over the web world. It has started exploiting the Internet to spread far and wide in society, causing severe destruction. Let us take a closer look at what cyberterrorism is.

An Introduction to Cyberterrorism

Cyberterrorism is the union of terrorism and the cyberspace. It refers to the use of computer networks to threaten the masses. It involves the utilization of computer infrastructure to terrorize society. According to some, cyberterrorism is the use of Internet by terrorist organizations to spread fear while others refer to it as the disruption of sensitive information stored on the web, thus causing loss of sensitive data. The disruption of information stored on computer networks is also a form of cyberterrorism.

Electronic means cannot cause physical harm. They can spread fear among the common masses but they are very unlikely to result in a massive physical destruction or death. Considering the advanced Internet security measures and the protective technologies in use, there are lesser chances of the Internet leading to terror attacks. Many computer theorists deny the existence of cyberterrorism. They prefer to call it as hacking or information warfare, wherein confidential information of individuals or organizations is put on stake by unethical Internet users. They define cyberterrorism as the group of activities that risk Internet safety of individuals and organizations.

However, many consider cyberterrorism as a serious threat to society. It is not right to underestimate the devastating effects of criminal practices like hacking and phishing. Hacking is the activity of breaking into a computer system in order to gain an unauthorized access to it. The unauthorized revelation of passwords, the hacking of IP addresses can prove being severe threats to the well-being of society. There have been instances of terrorist agencies hacking computer systems to gain access to sensitive and critical information. One example is of terrorists in Romania gaining access to the computers controlling the life support systems at the Antarctic research station. A relatively recent example is of the website of the Ukrainian president being attacked by hackers. Another simple example of cyberterrorism could be the hacking of a hospital database system and changing medical prescriptions of the patients. Isn’t that scary?

Protection against Cyberterrorism

In order to take effective measures against cyberterrorism, it is important for the computer professionals to understand its adverse effects and be able to identify the loopholes in Internet security. It is necessary to strengthen Internet security measures so that the society can be assured a safe life on the Internet.

Critical information should be isolated from the outside world. It should be protected by the means of firewalls, anitivirus software and complex password systems. Government organizations should be well-equipped to deal with cyber-terrorist activities. Similarly, banks, financial organizations and other critical information units should be well protected from practices such as phishing, hacking and identity theft. The information pertaining to national security is of highest importance for the people of any country. It needs to be effectively protected from unethical Internet users.

It is also important to ensure protection on an individual level. It is essential for all the Internet users to ensure Internet safety. In order to ensure protection from cyberterrorism, one’s email accounts should be protected through passwords that are not easily guessable. One should change the network configurations if defects are known and pay heed to network security issues on an urgent basis. One should not visit websites that can seem suspicious in order to keep away from Internet scams. It is important for every Internet user to know about the different types of computer crimes and take due precaution against all the ill-practices that eclipse the advantages of the Internet.