Statewide cybersecurity summit addresses recent cyberattacks
(WNDU) - Some say cyber-attacks are occurring at a pandemic pace. The attacks were the subject of an Indiana summit hosted by experts from I.U., Purdue, and Notre Dame.
In planning the virtual event, organizers had no idea how hot the topic would be.
This year, cyber-attackers have struck at two central Indiana health care facilities. The most recent attack was less than two weeks ago at Johnson Memorial Health in Franklin.
“The financial crimes enforcement network just recently put out a report that said, that the, they believe that more than $5.2 billion has been paid by U.S. industry to ransomware operators outside the U.S.,” said Purdue’s Eugene Spafford.
The keynote speaker was Dan Coats, the former director of national intelligence.
“What once was seen as a criminal nuisance not so long ago, now is seen as a matter of national and international security,” Coats said during his address.
Coats said the attack on the Colonial Pipeline in May of this year was a wakeup call. “The lesson we all took was that all systems are similarly vulnerable. These attacks were not Armageddon or Pearly Harbor but in a meaningful way they revealed a different type of apocalypse,” said Coats.
Coats believes the cure will require a strong dose of diplomacy. He noted that in June, the G7 countries issued statements that condemned China and Russia for “malicious cyber activity,” but member countries could not be persuaded to impose harsh consequences.
Coats expressed hope that action would be taken before something crippling happens and that the war will not be won by playing defense. “To making sure that we have offense in place, that we can get into their systems by any member, number of ways, we have capabilities through cyber,” he said. “They are not going to stop, and this is not going to be solved unless we take action, and that action is broadcast, and he starts to fear that if I get into this business, they’re coming after me.”
Coats was encouraged that President Biden told the United Nations to expect “relentless diplomacy” to deal with a number of outstanding issues including ransomware.
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