Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




CYBER WARS
Europe's cybersecurity policy settings under attack
by Staff Writers
Brussels (AFP) May 04, 2014


Even as Europe powered up its most ambitious ever cybersecurity exercise this month, doubts were being raised over whether the continent's patchwork of online police was right for the job.

The exercise, called Cyber Europe 2014, is the largest and most complex ever enacted, involving 200 organisations and 400 cybersecurity professionals from both the European Union and beyond.

Yet some critics argued that herding together normally secretive national security agencies and demanding that they spend the rest of 2014 sharing information amounted to wishful thinking.

Others questioned whether the law enforcement agencies taking part in the drill should be involved in safeguarding online security, in the wake of American whistleblower Edward Snowden's revelations of online spying by western governments.

"The main concern is national governments' reluctance to cooperate," said Professor Bart Preneel, an information security expert from the Catholic University of Leuven, in Belgium.

"You can carry out all of the exercises you want, but cybersecurity really comes down to your ability to monitor, and for that, national agencies need to speak to each other all the time," Preneel said.

The Crete-based office coordinating the EU's cybersecurity, the European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA), calls itself a "body of expertise" and cannot force national agencies to share information.

As with most aspects of policing and national security, the EU's 28 members have traditionally been reluctant to hand over powers to a central organisation, even when -- as in the case of online attacks -- national borders are almost irrelevant.

- 'Citizens and economy at risk' -

Cyberattacks occur when the computer information systems of individuals, organisations or infrastructure are targeted, whether by criminals, terrorists or even states with an interest in disrupting computer networks.

The EU estimates that over recent years there has been an increase in the frequency and magnitude of cybercrime and that the attacks go beyond national borders, while the smaller-scale spreading of software viruses is also an increasingly complex problem.

The EU's vulnerability has been highlighted over recent years by a number of high-profile cyberattacks, including one against Finland's foreign ministry in 2013 and a network disruption of the European Parliament and the European Commission in 2011.

And with Europe's supply of gas from Russia focusing attention on energy security, the highly computerised "smart" energy grids which transport and manage energy in the EU are also seen as vulnerable.

Yet the view from Brussels is that the member states' reluctance to work together on cybersecurity amounts to "recklessness", with one EU source saying national governments were "happy to put their citizens and economy at risk rather than coordinate across the EU."

ENISA was established in 2001 when it became clear that cybersecurity in the EU would require a level of coordination. Unlike other EU agencies, ENISA does not have regulatory powers and relies on the goodwill of the national agencies it works with.

The agency is undaunted by its task, arguing that the simulations it stages every two years, taking in up to 29 European countries, are both effective and necessary in preparing a response to cyber-attacks.

This week's simulation created what ENISA described as "very realistic" incidents in which key infrastructure and national interests came under attack, "mimicking unrest and political crisis" and "disrupting services for millions of citizens across Europe."

- Responsibility with industry -

However, Amelia Andersdotter, a Swedish member of the European Parliament with the libertarian Pirate Party, is dismissive of both the exercise and the European online security model.

Andersdotter, along with a number of European experts, is calling for reforms to move responsibility for cybersecurity away from law enforcement agencies toward civilian bodies.

Their argument is that a civilian agency would be better placed to coordinate a response with industry, which Andersdotter argues has not done enough to safeguard cybersecurity.

At present, she told AFP, industry actors in software or infrastructure simply report cybercrime to authorities without being required to compensate or inform consumers.

A civilian authority would end what Andersdotter calls the "conspiracy of database manufacturers and law enforcement agencies" by placing greater responsibility with industry.

What most experts agree on is that European companies and consumers are vulnerable to cybersecurity threats, and that can have an impact on people's willingness to use online services.

James Wootton, from British online security firm IRM, said the ENISA exercises are a step in the right direction, but are not enough.

"The problem is nation states wanting to fight cybercrime individually, even when cybercrime does not attack at that level," Wootton says, arguing that national law enforcement agencies often lack the required resources.

"So it is good to look at this at the European level, but what power does ENISA have? What can they force countries to do?"

Eurostat figures show that, by January 2012, only 26 percent of EU enterprises had a formally defined information technology security plan in place.

One industry insider said the view in Brussels is that EU cybersecurity was "like teenage sex: everyone says they are doing it but not that many actually are."

.


Related Links
Cyberwar - Internet Security News - Systems and Policy Issues






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








CYBER WARS
White House report embraces 'big data,' privacy rules
Washington (AFP) May 01, 2014
A study ordered by US President Barack Obama and released Thursday concludes that analysis of "big data" can help society in many ways, from improving health care to spurring economic growth. But the report also said the vast expansion of computer analytics of large data banks creates new threats to privacy, and recommended updated rules and laws to protect stored information. "The big d ... read more


CYBER WARS
John C. Houbolt, Unsung Hero of the Apollo Program, Dies at Age 95

NASA Completes LADEE Mission with Planned Impact on Moon's Surface

Russia plans to get a foothold in the Moon

Russian Federal Space Agency is elaborating Moon exploration program

CYBER WARS
Target on Mars Looks Good for NASA Rover Drilling

Mars Rover Switches to Driving Backwards Due to Elevated Wheel Currents

Mission to Mars

Traces of recent water on Mars

CYBER WARS
Boeing Showcases Future Commercial Spacecraft Interior

NASA Invests in Hundreds of US Small Businesses to Enable Future Missions

Orion Undergoes Simulation Of Intense Launch Vibrations

Orion Exploration Design Challenge Winner Announced

CYBER WARS
China issues first assessment on space activities

China launches experimental satellite

Tiangong's New Mission

"Space Odyssey": China's aspiration in future space exploration

CYBER WARS
NASA Seeks to Evolve ISS for New Commercial Opportunities

Astronauts Complete Short Spacewalk to Replace Backup Computer

No Official Confirmation of NASA Severing Ties with Russian Space Agency

Astronauts Prep for Spacewalk as Mission Managers Evaluate Busy Schedule

CYBER WARS
Elon Musk halts deal between USAF and Russian rocket-makers

Second O3b satellite cluster delivered for upcoming Arianespace Soyuz launch

Court blocks US plan to buy Russian rocket engines

Arianespace to launch Indonesia satellite BRIsat

CYBER WARS
Length of Exoplanet Day Measured for First Time

Spitzer and WISE Telescopes Find Close, Cold Neighbor of Sun

Alien planet's rotation speed clocked for first time

Seven Samples from the Solar System's Birth

CYBER WARS
Training range simulators in Britain, Canada getting support from Cubic

Sierra Nevada Corporation Completes and Delivers Satellites for ORBCOMM Mission 1 Launch

Edgy Look at 2D Molybdenum Disulfide

High-Strengh Materials from the Pressure Cooker




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.