Information Warfare: How to Survive Cyber Attacks

Rating:
Summary: Fun to read
Review: As an information security professional, I take an extreme interest in information warfare, as it is closely connected to the infosec field. Thus, I was excited to read Information Warfare: How to Survive Cyber Attacks, and see what it offered from the information security point of view.

However, author Michael Erbschloe seems to imply that readers who will benefit most from his book have a whole country under their command - that is the extremely high level at which it's aimed. People running companies will also benefit from Erbschloe's guidelines. Filled with exciting statistics, such as how many "cyberwarriors" the US will have by the year 2005 (the answer: triple the current amount), the book provides a fine-grained description of the cyberwarfare of the near future. While its style is reminiscent of an official government document, the book raises issues that might become important in the future, since our reliance on computers is constantly increasing. The book also provides the "big picture" of information warfare, a taxonomy of infowar strategies and a potential threat landscape with damage evaluation.

The most exciting chapter is a description of a fictitious "Trillion dollar cyberwar" waged by a band of 10 malicious hackers against the world. Combining email viruses, hacking and disclosure of sensitive information with physical attacks on phone company switches and computer installations, the group causes almost a month of trouble, triggering extensive panic, armed conflicts and other doomsday events. This Perl Harbor 2 (PH2) scenario is an example of "sustained terrorist information warfare," according to Erbschloe.

Information Warfare also sheds light on the motivations of those who become cyberwarriors - or cyberterrorists (the latter are described as "curious nerds moving to the dark side"). Erbschloe then ponders questions such as "Will Americans make good terrorists?"

Every chapter is concluded by a high-level agenda for action, mostly targeted to government and big business. The book suggests that the best way to prevent future "ruinous" cyberattacks is to establish a "super cyber patrol" for the Internet. Another suggestion is that computer users maintain constant battle readiness, a scenario analogous to the Cold War, in order to thwart potential attacks.

Overall, Information Warfare satisfied my curiosity on this exciting subject, providing enlightenment on what the future could bring to the field of information warfare.

Rating:
Summary: A break through in understanding information warfare!
Review: This analysis of information warfare goes far beyond the writers in the 1990s and it is the first book that digs into the potential economic impact of cyber attacks. The author also gives solid recommendations on how private companies and the government can work together, some of which may be rather alarming to the faint at heart.

Rating:
Summary: Better than a movie...
Review: This is an excellent book for the skeptic who thinks that "it can't happen to us!" I think many different companies (government and private sector alike) will be amazed at how comparitively little it actually costs to prevent a corporate disaster. Ever wish to go inside the mind of a good hacker and learn how he does it? This is the book for you!

Rating:
Summary: Better than a movie...
Review: This is an excellent book for the skeptic who thinks that "it can't happen to us!" I think many different companies (government and private sector alike) will be amazed at how comparitively little it actually costs to prevent a corporate disaster. Ever wish to go inside the mind of a good hacker and learn how he does it? This is the book for you!