Cyber Terrorism is the new buzzword. It’s what we should all be scared of. If even The Observer is publishing scare stories about this new threat to world safety then we know we’re in trouble.
Let’s get a couple of things straight: hacking into government websites is a bit like letting loose with a spraycan at an HMSO bookshop, and targeting the websites of companies is the same as sending malicious mail. Neither of these things are very nice, but they don’t endanger our national security. Defence computers sit separate from the rest of the internet and are not connected. Indeed any company worried about hacking into their system should keep most of the system away from the internet. There are plenty of measures that can be taken. Yes emails can be intercepted, but then emails should always be though of as postcards in security terms. Encryption is cheap and easy. Use it.
The Guardian published an excellent article about this last week.