Richard Clarke: China is Planting Digital Bombs Throughout the U.S. Power Grid

this is a very serious threat, both short term and long term, anyone who thinks china is our budy is kidding themselves...on another note, any attempts at constraining a future AI will be thwarted by one little hack

Maybe Iran is paying the Chinese to do it. Like the Russian hackers were paid by some of those countries. Cheaper to subcontract the work.

Agreed, The quote that "cyber attacks perpetrated by foreign governments can be considered acts of war" is little more than saber rattling.

The crux of the matter is that we need to be better training our forces, not only in physical warfare, but technological warfare.

The true battles that determine the course of our future are not going to be fought on the ground until it is too late. Long before that point they will be fought on servers.

Cyber-Terrorism is a greater threat from greater adversaries at this point than traditional terrorism. You have to fight fire with fire. The fire being cast at us in the form of cyber attacks must be dealt with by better trained hackers of our own. This is the only way that this issue can be dealt with as a physical attack will not be effective and will only lead to political/cultural backlash.

This is the new age of guerrilla warfare. The sooner the gov't figures that out, the better.

Clarke is crazy. Last time he said a guy in a desert mountain could possibly take down our economy with a bunch of planes. A guy in the desert WEARING SHEETS. Seriously? Then he said we'd have a rag tag bunch of fellow sheet wearing individuals wage a war on us which would cost us billions...the greatest nation in the world? Clarke doesn't know what he's talking about.

I mean why would the Chinese...someone to whom we owe trillions would want to take down our government.

Craziness.

Why would a communist nation ever be our friend?

What happened to America's fear of communism as we baby boomers grew up?

I'll tell you what--they have gone complacent and spoiled with the toys produced by China and they are being suckered into losing the war of the future.

Americans don't deserve to inherit this earth.

Too many morons like Bama brains.

Some things should simply never be connected to the internet! If you have something sensitive, put it on a stand-alone network. Plus, your employees will stop checking facebook when they should be working.

@nighthawkich

"Cyber-Terrorism is a greater threat from greater adversaries at this point than traditional terrorism. You have to fight fire with fire. The fire being cast at us in the form of cyber attacks must be dealt with by better trained hackers of our own."

I thought you were suppose to fight fire with water? Anyone?

I pity the fools who think the USA isn't doing the exact same thing to everyone else in the world. I don't even care if someone calls me a ton-foil hat wearing conspiratist; anyone with half a mind would see that a country that prides its self in being a high tech military super power would never not be engaged in military hacking and cyber probing.

@tertertert
i agree. for the most part we are prepared for serious threats. just as we were with the a bomb.

So then what's the real deal here, I wonder? We being softened up for another huge cybersecurity outlay already?

we should've never shared internet or computers with anyone

This would be the same Richard Clarke that warned President Bush about an impending attack by bin Laden. He was ignored, even though his "hair was on fire".

Now he is again warning about an impending disaster, will we listen this time? Or ignore him again.

We should hire Lulzsec to hack into chinas computers

@beantown,

"Then he said we'd have a rag tag bunch of fellow sheet wearing individuals wage a war on us which would cost us billions...the greatest nation in the world? "

So... do you know how much the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost "the greatest nation in the world" so far?

http://costofwar.com/en/

Yes, that number IS 1.26 TRILLION dollars.

Man! You are right! That guy Clarke SOOOooooo doesn't know what he's talking about... he said it was gonna cost us Billions... but, actually it cost us a Trillion+!

Craziness, indeed!

Perhaps we can find a better response than further government involvement into private entities.

What is the penalty that Lockheed is paying for allowing the Chinese access to "secure" information? Just like Sony, if you can't protect the information then you shouldn't record it.

Quasi federal entities should be required to have their secure data insured. The insurance company, in order to protect their investments should provide due dillegence. Any invasion into the secure data should be rewarded with a heavy fine.

@DerivePi,

"Perhaps we can find a better response than further government involvement into private entities."

So... how do you propose we accomplish all of those "shoulds" in your comment without further gov't involvement?

If the gov't isn't going to make Sony pay a fee for failing to protect information... who is? Who's going to enforce the "requirement" for having secured data insured?

The 38th parallel the stench of war is rising - China has already confirmed it is building it first aircraft carrier but how many are they really building – An Aircraft Carrier purpose is the core of a fleet designed to operate far from home, they serve the purpose of carrying and landing Marines, and operate a large contingent of helicopters for that purpose. Also known as "commando carriers" or "helicopter carriers", = Digital bombs when set of will make America useless to challenge CHINA'S intentions – by the time America gets it act together China will be in a new conquered Country and the west will be unable to shift them – My Guess they have an eye on Africa and it huge resources plus they will also attack South Korea dividing the West response making the West unable to concentrate its forces - The free world needs to wake up – CHINA has plans!!!!!!!

@Beantown179

I think B.V. Answered the first part of your comment pretty well.
Now as to the second part:

"I mean why would the Chinese...someone to whom we owe trillions would want to take down our government."

I think you answered your own question. We owe them trillions of dollars that we can't pay. What other way are they going to get it?

Also, here's a list of all the OTHER reasons they might have to attack us:

1. We are, like you said, ( one of) the greatest nations on earth, in terms of military force and financial stability. If they could cripple us to the point of being easily conquorable via cyber attacks, not only would they get all of our government funding, but also, they would have taken down their biggest rival and one of the most powerful countries on the planet.

2. The U.S. and Russia, after the cold war, had, and still have, the largest stores of nuclear weapons in the world (enough to destroy the world 7 times). If we are the victims of a massive cyber attack, we would lose all power to use those weapons. Then, china could take total control of them and become the single most powerful country in the world.

3. China has the biggest population for a single country in the world, and yet with only less than 5% of the population of earth, the U.S. is nearly the same size. It would give them more room for population growth, more space for citizens, and therefore more civilian support. Plus, in a socialist country, a bigger population means a larger military.

I hope I answered your question. They have plenty of reasons to attack us. HOWEVER, THE POINT OF THIS COMMENT WAS NOT TO STIR UP DISTRUST ABOUT THE CHINESE. Far from it. It was merely to inform that the U.S. and China are not allies.

Anyone who did not see Beantown's sarcasm should be shot. Plain as day people. Secondly, the real threat should be our own arrogance. Hackers are inescapably arrogant, when they say something is secure, they will prop their feet up with their hands clasped behind their head, $#!t eating grin on the whole time, until someone else hacks it. I just wish this pissing contest would be over. Seriously, if your going to steal from me, come on over and mug me like a normal human being. Otherwise I'll hire cyber P I, track you down, and open the blinds. The sharp contrast of daylight against the glow of your monitors should render you incapacitated, in which time, I will smash your piggy bank, and take an upper decker in your master bathroom.