The new cyber onslaught

For decades, analysts in the defense and intelligence communities have warned leaders and lawmakers of the risks of a potential cyber Pearl Harbor scenario. Recently, the focus in this space has been on numerous attacks where large-scale kinetic strikes took place at critical infrastructure components, shutting the nation's electric grid down, or that disrupted the very fabric of American society. These were common yet pervasive themes that permeated the news cycle. The fear of a widespread cyber-based attack lingered about the media as more and more exploits and data breaches became common occurrences. Most of the American populace did not understand the technical details of how, or why, these attacks continued unabated. Experts noted that the enemies of the United States were actively targeting vulnerable power generation stations, financial markets, transportation networks, academic institutions, and communications systems as part of this new type of...