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Email this citationCIAO DATE: 02/06
Are We Headed for a "Cyber-9/11?": The American Failure in Cyberstrategy
Benoit Gagnon
December 2004
Abstract
In the wake of September 11, the U.S. Superpower once again became a target. This time, the attack was carried out by means of the Internet. How effective is American cyberstrategy? Examining the hacking scene in the last couple of years, it is clear that it is not an adequate response to present—and future—cyberthreats. Therefore, it is fair to say that the United States has a national security problem rather than a cybersecurity problem and to conclude that as things stand at present the American government is steering the United States toward a cyber-9/11.
Although the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center seems to have caught many by surprise, we now know that the American government had long ago concluded that such a terrorist act could occur. However, for many reasons, the authorities did not take suitable measures to avert these types of aggression. It was well known that terrorists could use planes to assault American society, but the US government did not take the appropriate countermeasures to prevent an attack of this nature.
We can now conclude from those attacks that terrorist organizations were strong enough to undermine a powerful state like the United States, that American hegemony can be challenged—in a violent manner. Again, all of this was known by U.S. security agencies long before the World Trade Center collapsed.
