It all started from one malware-infected flash drive being used in a U.S. military base in
2008. Who knew that this would spark the biggest noteworthy security breach of US military
computers? According to the deputy secretary of defense, William Lynn III, this breach allowed
the US military to focus on a new cyber-defense strategy to combat future threats of the sort.

The malware in question was able to place a copy of itself within the U.S. Central Command
network and spread to systems indiscriminately according to Lynn. This made it possible for data
to be acquired by an unknown foreign server.

This kind of security breach is every network administrator’s worst nightmare. An unknown
program, which runs behind the scenes, could eventually provide important data to the
enemy. This incident which has already been declassified has shown how vulnerable the U.S.
military’s computer systems really were. The Pentagon responded by initiating the project
called “Operation Buckshot Yankee”, which aimed to improved how to defend and handle new
threats from cyberspace.

In Lynn’s article on “Defending a New Domain: The Pentagon’s Cyber strategy”, he was able
to discussed the many different threats to protect against and to what extent the US is vulnerable
based on its information infrastructure.

With the increasing capabilities of many foreign governments and hackers, the safety of critical
systems and infrastructure becomes more evident. Such systems like power grids, financial
systems, and others could experience computer related failure. Even hardware components
purchased abroad could be tampered with or replaced with counterfeits.

The proposed new measures to combat this threat include improving the current organizational
structure, securing civilian infrastructure, improving defense response time, improving
innovation in cyber-defense, and increasing the hiring of trained cyber-security professionals.

Cyberspace is now just as important as other military operations being done on land, air, sea, and
space.

Cyber attacks may not cause direct damage but it could still paralyze any society. Not only is
there the possibility of intellectual property being stolen, but it could even negatively affect the
global economy.

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