Cyber Warfare: Sport of the Future That recent attacks do not threaten Israel strategically does not mean we should discount the importance of cyber warfare. For while 0xOmar is essentially an annoying gadfly, cyber attacks are going to revolutionize the way future wars are fought. Indeed, the impact will eventually be akin to the introduction of the aircraft, dynamite, or gunpowder.Consider that even today, of all the efforts made by Western countries to delay the Iranian nuclear program, there is little doubt that Stuxnet, a sophisticated computer virus, was among the most effective at achieving that goal. In knocking out at least 1,000 centifuges, Stuxnet produced more concrete results than either limited sanctions or the plethora of Israeli and American military threats.That it was able to debilitate Iran's most sensitive systems, despite being "air-gapped" (meaning they were in no way connected to the internet), that is the sort of computer wizardry which separates true cyber threats from the antics of script kiddies out in the Saudi desert.Best of all, the lack of casualties and fireworks, coupled with the extreme difficulty in definitively attributing the source of cyber attacks, made Iranian military reprisals a poor option.Now, as impressive as Stuxnet was, it was just the opening salvo. Last October, we were afforded a first glimpse into exactly how potent this type of war-fighting could one day become. Specifically, senior US officials told the New York Times that they had debated using a cyber attack to neutralize Libya's air defense system. That's right: we are on the cusp of being able to largely disarm adversaries, in one fell swoop, without firing a single shot.When one considers the extent to which the cutting edge armies of the world are increasing their dependence on unmanned vehicles and devices (both in the air and on the ground) and increasing the degree to which units of all types are integrating based on improvements in information technology, the degree to which a highly successful cyber attack could one day paralyze whole armies is breath-taking.Ironically, the short-lived panic caused by 0xOmar might actually be a blessing in disguise for Israel in the long-term. But that will require our decision-makers, and particularly the IDF's top brass, to realize that shifting more resources to cyber warfare can conceivably bring a larger marginal return on investment than, say, improving IDF tanks or even IAF aircraft. Indeed, the IDF's ability to innovate its cyber weapons may very well determine its performance in the next major war.The writer is the former Deputy Director of the Global Research in International Affairs Center (GLORIA) in Herzliya.
0xOmar, Ayalon, and the next revolution in warfare
We are on the cusp of being able to disarm enemies without firing a single shot.
Cyber Warfare: Sport of the Future That recent attacks do not threaten Israel strategically does not mean we should discount the importance of cyber warfare. For while 0xOmar is essentially an annoying gadfly, cyber attacks are going to revolutionize the way future wars are fought. Indeed, the impact will eventually be akin to the introduction of the aircraft, dynamite, or gunpowder.Consider that even today, of all the efforts made by Western countries to delay the Iranian nuclear program, there is little doubt that Stuxnet, a sophisticated computer virus, was among the most effective at achieving that goal. In knocking out at least 1,000 centifuges, Stuxnet produced more concrete results than either limited sanctions or the plethora of Israeli and American military threats.That it was able to debilitate Iran's most sensitive systems, despite being "air-gapped" (meaning they were in no way connected to the internet), that is the sort of computer wizardry which separates true cyber threats from the antics of script kiddies out in the Saudi desert.Best of all, the lack of casualties and fireworks, coupled with the extreme difficulty in definitively attributing the source of cyber attacks, made Iranian military reprisals a poor option.Now, as impressive as Stuxnet was, it was just the opening salvo. Last October, we were afforded a first glimpse into exactly how potent this type of war-fighting could one day become. Specifically, senior US officials told the New York Times that they had debated using a cyber attack to neutralize Libya's air defense system. That's right: we are on the cusp of being able to largely disarm adversaries, in one fell swoop, without firing a single shot.When one considers the extent to which the cutting edge armies of the world are increasing their dependence on unmanned vehicles and devices (both in the air and on the ground) and increasing the degree to which units of all types are integrating based on improvements in information technology, the degree to which a highly successful cyber attack could one day paralyze whole armies is breath-taking.Ironically, the short-lived panic caused by 0xOmar might actually be a blessing in disguise for Israel in the long-term. But that will require our decision-makers, and particularly the IDF's top brass, to realize that shifting more resources to cyber warfare can conceivably bring a larger marginal return on investment than, say, improving IDF tanks or even IAF aircraft. Indeed, the IDF's ability to innovate its cyber weapons may very well determine its performance in the next major war.The writer is the former Deputy Director of the Global Research in International Affairs Center (GLORIA) in Herzliya.