Attacks on national security through the use of internet and computers

Attacks on national security through the use of Internet and computers Attacks on national security through the use of Internet and computers “ Cyber warfare or information warfare involves units organized along nation-state boundaries, in offensive and defensive operations, using computers to attack other computers or networks through electronic means”(Billow & Chang, 2004, p. 3). The development of computers and internet related technologies have opened a new channel of warfare for advanced countries. It is believed that China has already started cyber warfare with its enemy countries such as America, India etc. One of the major features of cyber warfare is the ability to attack even distant targets and stay anonymous. America like countries are currently tightening security measures against information warfare. Information warfare (IW) is normally classified into two groups; IW without using physical force during peace time and IW with physical force during military wars. Now the important question is whether information warfare without physical force can be labelled as warfare or not. This paper tries to answer this question.
Whether information warfare without physical force can be labelled as warfare or not
Before answering the above question, it is interesting to know the details given below;
Approximately two years ago, IW was used to disrupt the transfer of money from one arm of a Middle Eastern terrorist group to another. This terrorist financiers bank account was covertly broken into and the money was diverted. In a similar move at the beginning of the Kosovo conflict, methods were discussed and approved to put pressure on President Milosevic; these included tampering with or breaking into his bank accounts and disrupting his personal communications (Church, 2000).
From the above details, it is evident that IW can be used to cause immense economic damage to a country even during peace time. As mentioned earlier, it is difficult for the victim country to identify the source of attack and take preventive measures against cyber-attacks or IW. Computer networks are connected globally and it is easy for advanced countries to attack enemy targets without causing any human casualties. Trained computer professionals can break all the firewalls and cause immense financial damages in the enemy countries.
Even though there are plenty of international laws against military wars, these laws are inapplicable in the case of IW. In other words, the present cyber laws are incapable to handle anonymous attacks.
Cyber warfare will involve disruption of crucial network services and data, damage to critical infrastructure, and the creation of uncertainty and doubt among opposing commanders and political leaders. Cyber-attack provides an ability to strike both tactical and strategic targets from a distance using inexpensive systems (Lewis, 2010, p. 2).
From the above statistics, it is evident that IW has the potential to cause big headaches to enemy countries. When a country causes big damages in another country, it can be labelled as warfare even if it happens during peace time.
Conclusions
IW is definitely a form of warfare irrespective of whether it happens during peace time or war time. IW has the potential to cause immense financial damages to a country. One of the major objectives of any warfare is to cause financial damages to enemy nation. In that respect, IW can definitely include in the category of warfare.
References
Billo, C. & Chang, W. (2004). Cyber warfare: An analysis of the means and motivations of
Selected nation states. Retrieved from http://www. ists. dartmouth. edu/docs/cyberwarfare. pdf
Church, W. (2000). Information warfare. Retrieved from
http://www. icrc. org/eng/resources/documents/misc/57jqcz. htm
Lewis, J. A. (2010). Thresholds for Cyberwar. Retrieved from
http://csis. org/files/publication/101001_ieee_insert. pdf