See, I told you so. No good will come from this seductive high tech society. Dutch intelligence chief Rob Bertholee, has said that the world may be close to a “serious act of digital sabotage” which could trigger unrest, “chaos and disorder.” See: http://www.france24.com/en/20170516-world-close-serious-digital-sabotage-dutch-spy-chief?ref=fb.
Bertholee said at a cyber-security conference in The Hague, that sabotage of critical infrastructure “is the kind of thing that might keep you awake at night.” Digital threats “are not imaginary, they are everywhere around us.” “In my opinion, we might be closer to a serious act of digital sabotage than a lot of people can imagine.”
For example, apart from the existing “ransomware” attack, in 2012 the computers at Saudi Arabia’s largest oil company came under brief attack, and three years later Ukrainian electricity companies were hacked resulting in a massive blackout lasting several hours.
“Imagine what would happen if the entire banking system were sabotaged for a day, two days, for a week.” “Or if there was a breakdown in our transportation network. Or if air traffic controllers faced cyberattacks while directing flights. The consequences could be catastrophic.” “Sabotage on one of these sectors could have major public repercussions, causing unrest, chaos and disorder.”
Islamic terrorists may move in this direction, but conventional powers are also likely to resort to cyber-attacks, and may well be undertaking them now.
I for one, am stocking up on candles and matches for when the lights go out – forever.