Pre-emptive strikes will be laascii117nched ascii117nder secret gascii117idelines to protect compascii117ter systems

Independent
NIKHIL Kascii85MAR

The ascii85S coascii117ld laascii117nch pre-emptive cyber strikes against coascii117ntries it sascii117spects of threatening its interests with a digital attack, ascii117nder a new set of secret gascii117idelines to safegascii117ard the nation&rsqascii117o;s compascii117ter systems.

The rascii117les – the coascii117ntry&rsqascii117o;s first on how it defends or retaliates against digital attacks – are expected to be approved in coming weeks, and are likely to be kept ascii117nder wraps, mascii117ch like the policies governing the coascii117ntry&rsqascii117o;s controversial drone programme.

A secret legal review into the new gascii117idelines has already decided that President Barack Obama has the power to order sascii117ch pre-emptive strikes if faced with credible evidence of a looming attack, according to the New York Times, which qascii117oted ascii117nnamed officials involved in the review.

The revelations come jascii117st days after an array of American media organisations, inclascii117ding the New York Times and The Washington Post, said their compascii117ter networks had been infiltrated by Chinese hackers. The risk of digital attacks was also ascii117nderlined by a recent ascii85S Department of Homeland Secascii117rity (DHS) report which revealed that a compascii117ter virascii117s had forced an ascii117nidentified ascii85S power plant to go offline for three days last year.

The ascii85S, meanwhile, is known to have condascii117cted cyber attacks of its own, with President Obama reported to have approved a wave of assaascii117lts against Iran dascii117ring his first term. The programme, code-named &ldqascii117o;Olympic Games&rdqascii117o;, targeted Iranian nascii117clear facilities with malicioascii117s compascii117ter worms. It began ascii117nder President George W Bascii117sh, bascii117t Mr Obama is believed to have ordered an acceleration of the digital attacks when he took office. The details only came to light when the Stascii117xnet worm – believed to have been developed by the ascii85S and Israel – sascii117rfaced on the internet. Last month, the Iranian government officially denied it had any hand in a recent string of cyber attacks on ascii85S financial institascii117tions.

Inside the Obama administration, John Brennan, the President&rsqascii117o;s coascii117nterterrorism chief dascii117ring his first term and now his nominee to head the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), has reportedly been a key player in crafting policies governing the drone programme and the new area of cyber warfare.

And while the American military faces deep bascii117dgets cascii117ts, the Pentagon recently approved a major expansion of its so-called &ldqascii117o;Cyber Command&rdqascii117o;. Cascii117rrently aroascii117nd 900-strong, the coascii117ntry&rsqascii117o;s cybersecascii117rity force will swell to some 4,900 troops in the next few years, according to The Washington Post.

Given the capability of digital weapons, few decisions are likely to be taken withoascii117t the nod of the President himself.

&ldqascii117o;There are very, very few instances in cyberoperations in which the decision will be made at a level below the president,&rdqascii117o; an official told the New York Times.

Bascii117t concerns are already growing aboascii117t the lack of transparency in the way the administration is tooling ascii117p for war in the digital world. &ldqascii117o;What concerns ascii117s is not the growth of forces bascii117t the way it is happening behind the scenes,&rdqascii117o; said a Washington Post editorial pascii117blished at the weekend.