McAfee has revealed that the global cyberarms race has moved from that of fiction to reality, according to its fifth annual Virtual Criminology Report. The report found that politically motivated cyberattacks have increased and five countries, namely the United States, Russia, France, Israel and China, are now armed with cyberweapons.
“McAfee began to warn of the global cyberarms race more than two years ago, but now we are seeing increasing evidence that it has become real,” said Dave DeWalt, McAfee President & CEO. “Now several nations around the world are actively engaged in cyberwar-like preparations and attacks. Today, the weapons are not nuclear, but virtual, and everyone must adapt to these threats.”
The Virtual Criminology Report includes insights from more than two dozen of the world’s leading experts in international relations, including Dr. Jamie Saunders, counselor at the British Embassy in Washington D.C. Former White House advisor Paul Kurtz has compiled the report on McAfee’s behalf.
The report for the first time provides a definition to cyberwar, identifies the countries involved in developing cyberoffenses and cyberdefenses, dissects examples of politically-motivated cyberattacks and reveals how the private sector will get caught in the crossfire. Government disclosure is also a major issue, as cyber initiatives and information are often classified by the government, hindering cybercrime defense in the public and private sectors.
