While the last United Nations General Assembly will be mostly remembered for the disgraceful display orchestrated by the handlers of manipulated 16-year-old Greta Thunberg, lost in the hoopla that can only be described as “GretaMania” was a historic cybersecurity joint agreement signed by 27 countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, and Canada just prior to the UN General Assembly's General Debate.
The agreement in large part sought to address the increasing instances of state sponsored hacking against critical infrastructure targets internationally. Just this summer, the New York Times reported that the United States government was ramping up its efforts at exploiting vulnerabilities in the Russian power grid in response to Russia allegedly inserting malware into the systems controlling American power plants, oil and gas pipelines, and water supplies.
A large portion of the agreement carries the theme that countries should follow international law regarding what may constitute acceptable state-sponsored hacking efforts. While the United States and many of its allies generally agree that it is reasonable for intelligence agencies to hack targets with the intent to spy on and attack military targets, this pledge reiterates the belief that attacking civilian infrastructure targets is considered strictly off limits.
No comments:
Post a Comment