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List:       isn
Subject:    [ISN] Cyberattacks spur new DOD warning system
From:       jericho () dimensional ! com
Date:       1998-03-27 9:02:22
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From: Brian Matthews

   
   Cyberattacks spur new DOD warning system
   
   BY HEATHER HARRELD (heather@fcw.com) 
   
   The Defense Department has created a new alert system to rate the level
of threats to its information systems that mirrors the well-known Defense
Conditions (DEFCONs) ratings that mark the overall military status in
response to traditional foreign threats.
   
   The new Information Conditions, or INFOCONs, are raised and lowered
based upon cyberthreats to DOD or to the U.S. Strategic Command (Stratcom) 
at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. Stratcom is responsible for
deterring any military attack on the United States and for deploying
troops or launching nuclear weapons should deterrence fail, a Stratcom
spokesman said. As INFOCONs are raised, officials take additional measures
to protect information systems. 
   
   While DEFCONs have been popularized in movies such as "WarGames" and
"The Hunt for Red October," this is the first time electronic threats have
been included in the assessment of the nation's overall safety from enemy
attacks. The INFOCONs are a response to a recent Defense Science Board
report that concluded that reliance on computer systems to operate key
infrastructures has "created a tunnel of vulnerability previously
unrealized in the history of conflict" and could have a "catastrophic
effect on the ability of [DOD] to fulfill its mission." 
   
   Stratcom uses five levels to indicate the threat to information
technology systems: Normal indicates the lowest IT Defense posture; then
the INFOCONs rise to levels labeled Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta, the
highest posture. As the threat to systems increases, officials employ more
stringent policies and procedures, including, for example, disconnecting
from the Internet and monitoring all systems in real time. Structured,
systematic attacks to penetrate systems will result in a higher INFOCON
level than when individual, isolated attempts are made, according to
Stratcom.


-o-
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