A hacker could exploit the current U.S. ausknipsen.

Ailing, vulnerable, outdated: The U.S. power grid is considered to be potential security risk. Experts from the U.S. government have warned against dangerous leaks. Hackers have already infiltrated some networks - and could in the worst case, the U.S. might cut off the electricity.

 

Hamburg - It would be a nightmare scenario: The Wall Street Journal reported on its website statements by unnamed IT Security Officer in U.S. government circles that Russian and Chinese hackers are now in a position to be, critical infrastructures in the United States to intervene, this to disrupt - or even off.

Thus specialists American secret services in the networks of foreign suppliers of energy programs with unexplained tasks found. Moreover, had not notified the Chinese and Russians tried to "map our infrastructure," like an unnamed, but identified as a leading representative of the secret-Gazette said.

Warnings about the infiltration of critical infrastructures are neither new nor original: There is no digital network infrastructure around the world, in which no intrusion attempts were perpetrated, and hardly any that are entirely free from sniffer programs, Trojan horses or viruses would be.

Only last week had IT security researchers, the existence of a gigantic "Ghostnet" made public and now to the public so that the pressing Geheimdienstlern arguments supplied: From China, there was basis in recent years been a spate of hacking attacks against governments, authorities and institutions. Even German embassies and ministries, and are also affected.

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So far, so trivial - and yet so potentially dangerous. The secret use of the public attention for the Ghostnet to once again put their message to the man to bring: There are infrastructures that are so important that it has disastrous consequences when the collapse. And yes, they are in many ways vulnerable and under virtual constant attack. And no, the attacks appeared not targeted, said the experts to the "Wall Street Journal," we did not know who is exactly what would and if at all. But "Cyber Attacks" are ubiquitous and always detectable.

Espionage attempts, said a representative of the Homeland Security Department the sheet, there is constantly against all possible networks across the country. In relation to the electricity supplier, he said: "There are burglaries, and their number is growing. There were a lot last year."

Is it something really dangerous?

This supports a recent statement by the top-secret service coordinator, Dennis Blair, U.S. MPs on attacks against critical infrastructure and abroad informed about the fact that American no less at risk.

That is precisely the danger of the power will be stressed, is no coincidence. The U.S. power grid is considered to be completely ramshackle, outdated and extremely vulnerable. Again and again it was in past decades by some minimal causes widespread power outages have come alone in New York was 1977, 2003 and last 2006 to power failures, the collapse of the temporary care and public policy led.

In January, the Nasa a report to the many shocks Official:
Severe Space Weather Events - Understanding Societal and Economic Impacts "calculated, as a natural, periodically occurring event such as a solar storm in extreme cases to Vollkollaps of the U.S. power grid could lead.

That, they calculated the Nasa experts cool, would within days, the water supply to a halt, the rest would be Domino: A collapsing infrastructure cracks down the next. At the end would be within a very short time millions of people dead and the country in a state from which it is on their own without any help from outside could hardly recover. The tech world, according to the NASA researchers who would, in the worst case back to a pre-engineering stage.

Cyber Security costs money

The consultant team Barack Obama had such a glaring scenario is not needed for the explosiveness of the topic to understand critical infrastructure. The Obama Administration began with the government over the issue of electricity all the way to the top of the agenda for cyber security measures, which next week will be presented.

Behind the scenes of the critical infrastructures are now a constant theme, the public regularly hochgekocht if greater spending and made it public that wants to create acceptance. At such times verstiegen itself FBI handlebars on abstruse scenarios such as hacking attacks on dam gates - but the joke should be accepted for the expansion of the secret surveillance and the creation. With success.

Once again, there should be about money, what the "Wall Street Journal" only very implicitly suggests: Even the Bush administration, they wrote with reference to unnamed sources, will be launched in the last few years, 17 billion U.S. dollars in the Cyber Security have invested. According to official figures alone, the Pentagon in the last six months 100 million U.S. dollars for the repair of cyber damage output.

The McKinnon-factor is always someone sniffs

What may sound more dramatic than it is. In such calculations are also update costs for vulnerable systems, man-hours and software costs after Virenbefällen as in the case Conficker. And of course, include damage such as caused by the "UFO Hacker" Gary McKinnon, who is on the lookout for evidence of UFOs to 97 NASA, Pentagon and other government computers were around.

McKinnon, who is still in the UK against his extradition to the U.S. is fighting, where it up to 70 years prison expected to be approximately $ 700,000 damage caused - blasphemous mouths say, mainly through disclosure faust big security holes that had to be stopped after McKinnon burglaries apparently made hattten. McKinnon himself says to his relief, everything was so easy. That is probably the most: Nobody knows how many McKinnon just underway, how many gaps in the so-sensitive key networks, such as yawning.

And of course, including hackers from China and Russia, and perhaps even state employees who are in the virtual networks with their colleagues from the NSA take, and measure the largest and most powerful U.S. Secret Service.

It has at least formally, no other task than the electronic espionage and counterintelligence. Whether the Chinese and Russians, the U.S. can cut off the electricity? Well possible, but they are faster than the NSA, when potential adversaries might attempt the same? Behind the scenes there is a competition of the other arms, the new variety. And yes, attacks on critical infrastructures are potentially highly dangerous. Well, if now and then one says - even if it is really no specific reason for doing so.