Cyber-attacks

The fact that Georgia's websites were blocked is a scary idea. The fact that it was most likely by Russia due to the war. It makes it even more disturbing in the fact that even though Russian officials state there was no war, this would be the only reason to block Georgian websites. In this way, the country was disabled. It would not only affect services such as the police, fire department, etc., but civilians as well. This seems to be more like a war against every single person in Georgia.

The fact that in today's society, the web has been so ingrained into our psyches that we are lost without it. During a traditional war, the fighting can affect civilians. Many are killed who are not actually involved in the fighting. Cyber-warfare allows for an enemy to target non-combatants definitely.

My computer passed on a few weeks ago. I have been at a total loss. I am lucky that have been able to use my mother's computer in order to access the internet. I check my email accounts, bank account, various websites and of course, UMass' websites. The fact that cyber-warfare is excentually like my computer for everyone in a country that is targeted, is a hard to digest. The government, financial, commerce, education, private-sector employers and citizens can now be the direct target of terrorism or war.

It just shows that we have to insure that our infastructure can function without the internet in order to protect ourselves. I know a lot of people who would not have a clue how to function. My previous employer used the internet for everything! The computer files and screens that we had to access were all internet based programs. For example, in order to do our timesheets you had to log into a website to do so. If you got a question from a customer that you did not know, you had to access another web page to look up the information. The business is total dependent on the internet. I see it know as being too dangerous. It is only auto insurance, but it would affect so many people if those website went away.