Society | DOI: 10.1145/1859204.1859212
Samuel Greengard
The new face of War
With the introduction of the sophisticated Stuxnet worm,
the stakes of cyberwarfare have increased immeasurably.
EVer sinCe eUropean cyber- security officials discovered the Stuxnet worm last June, it has been characterized as a “paradigm shift” in criti-
cal infrastructure threats. European
Network and Information Security
Agency Executive Director Udo Helm-
brecht characterized Stuxnet, which is
unprecedented in its capabilities and
sophistication, as “a new class and di-
mension of malware.”
Stuxnet, which contains four zero-
day Windows vulnerabilities as well
as two stolen digital certificates for
authentication is the first discovered
worm that secretly monitors and repro-
grams industrial control systems. Stux-
net exploits weaknesses in Windows
operating systems and takes command
of a Siemens component that controls
critical industrial operations, such as
those of oil pipelines, electrical power
grids, and nuclear energy plants.
Whether Stuxnet is a new weapon
of modern espionage or cyberwarfare
is unclear. However, many security
experts believe the sophisticated malware was developed by a well-funded
private entity or a national government agency to attack Iran’s industrial infrastructure, including the
Bushehr nuclear power plant. Iranian officials report that Stuxnet has
infected 30,000 machines involved
in running its industrial control systems, and the Bushehr facility reportedly didn’t work correctly for several
months. “An electronic war has been
launched against Iran,” according to
Mahmoud Liaii, director of Iran’s Information and Technology Council of
the Industries and Mines Ministry.
To be certain, the digital age is ushering in entirely new ways to fight wars.
“Cyber tools can be used as an instrument for government security as well
as for military and intelligence purposes,” states Herbert Lin, chief scientist
for the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board at the U.S. Na-
Cyberwarfare or industrial espionage? The Stuxnet worm has infected 30,000 machines in
iran, including an unknown number at the Bushehr nuclear power plant.
tional Research Council. Adds Rain Ot-
tis, a staff scientist at the Cooperative
Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in
Tallinn, Estonia, “Cyber warfare is al-
most certain to emerge the next time
two technologically advanced states
fight a major shooting war.”
It’s not an abstract concept. Al-
though government Web sites and com-
puter systems are likely targets (many
government systems are 10 to 20 years
old and can’t support modern security
standards), civilian targets like power
grids, telecommunications networks,
flight control systems, and financial
networks are also at risk. “Cyberwarfare
has the potential to cause significant
strategic damage,” observes Sami Say-
djari, CEO of Cyber Defense Agency,
a cybersecurity consulting firm head-
quartered in Wisconsin Rapids, WI.
The Changing nature of War
The evolution of weaponry has always
centered on gaining superiority over an
enemy. However, in the digital age, the
nature of war is changing radically. It’s
one thing to detect an invading army
and its well-marked planes, tanks, and
troops. It’s not so simple to identify
bits and bytes of data, ascertain exactly
where they’re coming from, and under-
stand the sender’s intentions.
