Countries shore up their digital defenses as global tensions raise the threat of cyberwarfare

WASHINGTON AP Hackers linked to Russia s cabinet launched a cyberattack last spring against municipal water plants in rural Texas At one plant in Muleshoe population water began to overflow Executives had to unplug the system and run the plant manually The hackers weren t trying to taint the water supply They didn t ask for a ransom Leadership determined the intrusion was designed to test the vulnerabilities of America s masses infrastructure It was also a warning In the st century it takes more than oceans and an army to keep the United States safe A year later countries around the world are preparing for greater digital conflict as increasing global tensions and a looming arrangement war have raised the stakes and the chances that a cyberattack could cause key economic damage disrupt vital general systems reveal sensitive business or ruling body secrets or even escalate into military confrontation The confluence of events has national safety and cyber experts warning of heightened cyberthreats and a growing digital arms race as countries look to defend themselves At the same time President Donald Trump has upended America s digital defenses by firing the four-star general who led the National Guard Agency shrinking cybersecurity agencies and slashing electoral contest cybersecurity initiatives Businesses now are increasingly concerned about cyberattacks and governments have moved to a war footing according to a account this month by NCC Group a British cybersecurity firm The geopolitical dust is still settling stated Verona Johnstone-Hulse a London-based expert on ruling body cybersecurity polices and the statement s co-author What the new normal looks like is still not yet set Several in the U S are already calling for a more muscular approach to protecting the digital frontier Hybrid war is here to stay noted Tom Kellermann senior vice president of cyberstrategy at Contrast Measure We need to stop playing defense it s time to make them play defense Digital life means more targets for hackers Vulnerabilities have grown as people and businesses use connected devices to count approaches manage finances and operate facilities such as water plants and ports Each system and connection is a foreseen target for foreign governments or the hacking groups that sometimes do their bidding Espionage is one motive demonstrated in a up-to-date incursion linked to hackers in China The campaign known as Salt Typhoon sought to crack the phones of bureaucrats including Trump before the balloting These operations seek entry to sensitive corporate or executive systems to steal secrets or monitor personal communications Such information can be hugely valuable by providing advantages in deal negotiations or military planning These hackers try to remain hidden for as long as achievable More obvious intrusions can serve as a warning or deterrent such as the cyberattacks targeting the Texas water plants Iran also has shown a willingness to use cyberattacks to make political points The cyberattacks that frighten experts the largest part burrow deeply into telephone or computer networks inserting backdoors or malware for later use National safeguard experts say this was the motivation behind a current attack from China called Volt Typhoon that compromised telephone networks in the U S in an effort to gain access to an unknown number of critical systems China could potentially use these connections to disable key infrastructure power plants communication networks pipelines hospitals financial systems as part of a larger conflict or before an invasion of Taiwan national measure experts revealed They can position their implants to be activated at a date and time in the future revealed Sonu Shankar a former researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory who is now chief strategy officer at Phosphorus Cybersecurity National shield leaders will not discuss details but experts interviewed by The Associated Press explained the U S no doubt has developed similar offensive capabilities China has rejected U S charges of hacking accusing America of trying to smear Beijing while conducting its own cyberattacks Global tensions tick up Wars in Ukraine and the Middle East Agreement disputes Shifting alliances The hazard of cyberattacks goes up in times of global tension and experts say that liability is now at a high U S adversaries China Russia Iran and North Korea also have shown signs of cybercooperation as they forge tighter economic military and political relationships Speaking to Congress Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard noted that Iran has supplied drones in exchange for Russian intelligence and cybercapabilities Russia has been the catalyst for much of this expanded cooperation driven heavily by the help it has needed for its war effort against Ukraine Gabbard advised lawmakers Amid global fears of a contract war after the tariffs that Trump has imposed supply chains could be targeted in retaliation While larger companies may have a robust cyberteam small suppliers that lack those tools can give intruders easy access And any tit-for-tat cycles of cyberconflict in which one country hacks into a sensitive system as retaliation for an earlier attack come with great exposure for all involved Shankar mentioned It would put them on the path to military conflict The Trump effect At a time when national defense and cybersecurity experts say the U S should be bolstering its defenses Trump has called for reductions in staffing and other changes to the agencies that protect American interests in cyberspace For example Trump of late fired Gen Timothy Haugh who oversaw the NSA and the Pentagon s Cyber Command The U S faces unprecedented cyber threats declared Virginia Sen Mark Warner the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee He has solicited the White House to explain Haugh s departure How does firing him make Americans any safer Warner revealed Also under Trump the U S Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Agency placed on leave staffers who worked on referendum prevention and cut millions of dollars in funding for cybersecurity programs for local and state elections His administration eliminated the State Department s Global Engagement Center which tracked and exposed foreign disinformation online The CIA NSA and other intelligence agencies also have seen reductions in staffing The administration faced more questions over how seriously it takes cybersecurity after senior leaders used the popular messaging app Signal to discuss sensitive information about upcoming military strikes in Yemen Gabbard later called the episode a mistake The officers in charge of America s cybersecurity insist Trump s changes will make the U S safer while getting rid of wasteful spending and confusing regulations The Pentagon for instance has invested in efforts to harness artificial intelligence to improve cyberdefenses according to a summary provided to Congress by Lt Gen William J Hartman acting commander of the NSA and Cyber Command The changes at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Shield Agency come as its leaders consider how best to execute their mission in alignment with the administration s priorities a CISA message explained As America s Cyber Defense Agency we remain steadfast in our mission to safeguard the nation s critical infrastructure against all cyber and physical threats the announcement read We will continue to collaborate with our partners across establishment industry and with international allies to strengthen global cybersecurity efforts and protect the American people from foreign adversaries cybercriminals and other emerging threats Representatives for Gabbard s office and the NSA didn t respond to questions about how Trump s changes will affect cybersecurity Signs of progress Despite shifting alliances a growing consensus about cyberthreats could prompt greater global cooperation More than nations not long ago signed on to an international framework on the use of commercial spyware The U S has signaled it will join the nonbinding agreement There s also broad bipartisan agreement in the U S about the need to help private industry bolster defenses Federal estimates say the cybersecurity industry demands to hire an additional professionals to meet the challenge announced Dean Gefen former chief of cybertraining for Israel s Defense Intelligence Technological Unit He s now the CEO of NukuDo a cybersecurity training company Companies need effective guidance from the authorities a playbook Gefen mentioned What to do what not to do Source