June 24, 1998
Cyber Attack: Is the Nation at Risk?
The June 24, 1998 hearing "Cyber Attack: Is the Nation at Risk?" addressed threats and vulnerabilities to the U.S. national security due to weak computer security. The Director of Central Intelligence, Mr. George Tenet, testified that information warfare has the potential to deal a crippling blow to our national security if we do not take strong measures to counter it. Director Tenet noted that the U.S. is highly dependant on information systems and therefore is the most likely target for an information attack. Potential attackers range from national intelligence and military organizations, terrorists, criminals, industrial competitors, hackers, to disgruntled or disloyal insiders. Director Tenet stated that several countries, to include Russia and China, have government-sponsored information warfare programs with both offensive and defensive applications. These countries see information warfare as a way of "leveling the playing field" against a stronger military power, such as the U.S. The more difficult threat to assess is that from non-State actors, such as terrorists and criminals. Cyber attacks offer these groups greater security and operational flexibility. They can launch an assault from almost anywhere in the world, without directly exposing themselves to physical harm.
The Director of the National Security Agency (NSA), Lieutenant General Ken Minihan, testified on the findings from the Department of Defense's exercise ELIGIBLE RECEIVER, which demonstrated that our nation's information infrastructure is riddled with vulnerabilities and that we have severe deficiencies in our ability to respond to a coordinated attack on our national infrastructure and information systems. During the exercise, a team of "hackers" from NSA, using easily obtained tools off the Internet, proved that they could deny our military the ability to deploy forces and conduct operations.
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