Opinions from around the country

Agencies shouldn’t look past computer-terrorism
Conventional terrorism and bioterrorism might not be the only worries for the United States because of the recent emergence of computer terrorism.

Last month, a rogue program developed and launched in Hong Kong hit the Internet; this attack cost the Internet industry billions of dollars and disrupted 911 services as well as banking operations. The developer of the program, SQL Slammer, could face life in prison if ever caught.

Hackers continue to develop new ways to thwart systems almost as soon as patches are released. Internet viruses and worms cost very little to produce, but economic effects can be extremely large.

So far, the United States has only suffered localized Internet attacks. Yet, as hackers pool their resources and targets become grandly specialized, the institutions of the United States come closer to peril.

The potential financial impact from a relentless and apocalyptic computer program far outweighs the dangers posed by dormant ballistic missiles. An investment in shoring up the computer defenses of the U.S. government and connected agencies would be more beneficial to the safety and welfare of the American people. The United States’ vulnerability to vicious computer attacks has yet to be seriously tested, and government acts of pre-emption in this instance are justified.

This column appeared in the Minnesota Daily at the University of Minnesota. It was distributed by U-Wire.