Monday, December 15, 2003		Feature

Ultra-hacker nexus
Bernhard Warner

Counter-terrorism agents are confronting a new threat — teams of computer hackers aiming to maximise the death toll in terror attacks by paralysing the emergency rescue services.

Since 9/11, the US police and intelligence officials studying terror plots have been forced to add a new dimension to their planning: groups of highly skilled cyber-terrorists. A potential scenario might be this: A truck carrying explosives races towards the main entrance of a city centre rail station at rush hour, just as a computer whiz hacks into the emergency response telephone network.

There is a huge blast. With the communications system knocked out, the police and rescue units are paralysed. Emergency teams lose precious minutes attending to the scene and the toll of dead and injured climbs. This type of chain of events was, until recently, spoken about in hypothetical terms. Now, police forces and intelligence agencies around the world say it’s not a matter of if, but when. With more of the world’s critical infrastructure linked to computer networks, the risk of a hacking intrusion has become all the more tangible. Organised crime rings have become highly adept at using sophisticated hacking schemes — from digital attacks capable of knocking businesses offline to breaking into companies’ networks to steal vital information.