Cyber Round Up: Rudy Giuliani compares cybersecurity to cancer and hackers to the Mafia, U.S. Utilities worry about cyber coverage after Ukraine Attack, Congress Needs to Catch up on Cybersecurity Issues
Rudy Giuliani Compares Cybersecurity to Cancer and Hackers to the Mafia (MarketWatch): In a recent MarketWatch article, Giuliani, a prostate cancer survivor compared cybersecurity to cancer, saying that both present similar challenges and that early detection is vital to reducing damage. Giuliani went on to say that cybercrime reminds him of the organized criminal networks that he pursued back in the 80’s, according to the article. The article indicates that Giuliani’s move into cybersecurity reflects reluctance on the part of many CEO’s to hire traditional cybersecurity firms, especially those that are largely staffed by ex-hackers. Giuliani’s approach was quite different as he decided to recruit from the ranks of ex-military rather than looking at reformed hackers, the article stated. The full article may be found here.
Continued Exposure for the U.S. Power Industry (Reuters): Jim Finkle reports in Reuters that U.S. utilities are closely examining their exposure and insurance coverage following the Ukraine power grid hack which was reportedly the first cyber attack to cause a physical power outage. The article indicates that a similar attack in the United States could devastate utilities and result in financial losses of more than $200 billion. Several utilities, namely, American Electric Power Company, Duke Energy Corp., Nextera Energy, Inc., and PG&E Corp., have warned about their exposure to cyber risks in their annual reports provided to security regulators, according to the article. Furthermore, the article states that a study by Lloyd’s of London and the University of Cambridge indicated that simultaneous malware attacks on just 50 generators in the Northeastern US could cut power to nearly 100 million people and result in $243 billion in economic damage and between $21 and $71 billion in insurance claims. The full article is here.
Congress Needs to Catch up on Cybersecurity Issues (FCW): This article by Aisha Chowdhry credits Sen. Rob Johnson (R-Wis.) as saying that the U.S. is behind the curve on cybersecurity and the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 should have been passed years ago. Johnson also indicated that our energy infrastructure is inadequately protected and no one is even talking about the use of electromagnetic pulse (“EMP”) weapons, according to the article. The full text of the article is here.
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