Cyber Breaches Will Kill

People's property and life are getting increasingly exposed to cyber-attacks because just about everything today has computing power, an information security expert warns. A world of "smart" devices means the Internet can kill people.

“It used to be what with computer security, we were worried about computers, desktops and laptops,” Bruce Schneier, (pictured) a special advisor to IBM Security, said Tuesday 14th May during the Payments Canada Summit in Toronto.

But cars, appliances, power plants and medical devices are at increased risk from hacking attacks, suggested Schneier, author of Click Here to Kill Everybody.

Everything is a computer. Ovens are computers that make things hot; refrigerators are computers that keep things cold. These computers, from home thermostats to chemical plants, are all online. The Internet, once a virtual abstraction, can now sense and touch the physical world.

As we open our lives to this future, often called the Internet of Things, we are beginning to see its enormous potential in ideas like driverless cars, smart cities, and personal agents equipped with their own behavioral algorithms. But every knife cuts two ways.

“All the lessons from computer security, about vulnerabilities, about hacking, about complexity, about changing technology, become true for everything everywhere, and I am not convinced we are ready for that,” Schneier said during the recent  Payments Canada Summit in Toronto.

“There’s a fundamental difference between ‘my spreadsheet crashes and I lose my data,’ and ‘my embedded heart monitor crashes and I lose my life,'” said Schneier.

But the computer you use for the spreadsheets could have the same type of operating system and central processing unit as one with an embedded heart monitor, added Schneier, and therefore the same method can be used to attack both.

“It’s only what the computer is attached to that makes a difference and that is the world that is coming.”
Conventional computers can be made more secure with patching but this is because the software vendors have teams working on software that addresses security issues and can be installed by the users.

“That fails with low-cost medical devices. The teams don’t exist.”

Schneier suggested that although he worries that someone might hack into his medical records and steal his private health records, he is even more worried about the consequences of a hacker being able to alter his health records and show that he has a different blood type.

Cyber security has three major elements, confidentiality, integrity and availability, said Schneier.

Confidentiality means only certain authorised people can access the data.

Integrity means the data cannot be changed and availability means that one has access to the data. So a corporate data breach means the data is no longer being kept confidentiality, while a ransomware attack means the data is no longer available.

If a criminal can hack into medical records and change what is recorded as the patient’s blood type, then the integrity of the data is compromised.

“When you get to computers that affect the world in a direct physical manner, the integrity and availability attacks are much worse than the confidentiality attacks because there are real risks to life and property,” said Schneier.

He demonstrated the significance by using an example of hackers targeting a connected car. Listening to one’s conversations on a Bluetooth-enabled cellphone or figuring out someone’s location is a confidentiality breach, suggested Schneier.

“I really don’t want them disabling the brakes. That is a data availability attack,” said Schneier, who is also a fellow at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University

“Your car used to be a mechanical device. Now it’s a computer with four wheels plus and an engine.”

Canadian Underwriter:

You Might Also Read: 

Security Flaws In Smart City Technology

 

 

« The Worldwide Skills Shortage Is Growing
Iranian Cyber-Espionage Exposed »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

MIRACL

MIRACL

MIRACL provides the world’s only single step Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) which can replace passwords on 100% of mobiles, desktops or even Smart TVs.

Practice Labs

Practice Labs

Practice Labs is an IT competency hub, where live-lab environments give access to real equipment for hands-on practice of essential cybersecurity skills.

IT Governance

IT Governance

IT Governance is a leading global provider of information security solutions. Download our free guide and find out how ISO 27001 can help protect your organisation's information.

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO is the market leader in HPE Non-Stop Security, Risk Management and Compliance.

Genua

Genua

Genua is a specialist in IT security services and solutions ranging from network and infrastructure security to encrypted comms and industrial automation.

Samsung Knox

Samsung Knox

Samsung Knox brings multi-layered defence-grade security to your business’s smartphones and tablets.

Introspective Networks

Introspective Networks

Introspective Networks (IN) is a Cybersecurity company focusing on securing data in the network and automating knowledge work to decrease vulnerability points to critical infrastructure.

Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS)

Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS)

SAS is the national accreditation body for Switzerland. The directory of members provides details of organisations offering certification services for ISO 27001.

SITA

SITA

SITA is a multinational information technology company providing IT and telecommunication services to the air transport industry including vulnerability assessments and managed security services.

TAC Security (TAC Infosec)

TAC Security (TAC Infosec)

TAC Security (aka TAC Infosec) is a leading and trusted cyber security consulting partner that specializes in securing the IT infrastructure and assets of enterprises.

National Cryptologic Foundation (NCF)

National Cryptologic Foundation (NCF)

The National Cryptologic Foundation strives to influence the cryptologic future by sharing our educational resources, stimulating new knowledge, and commemorating our heritage.

Opticks Security

Opticks Security

Opticks provides fraud detection and monitoring solutions for leading brands. agencies and networks. Our relentless mission is to deliver reliable and innovative software to beat digital fraud.

Aite-Novarica Group

Aite-Novarica Group

Aite-Novarica's Cybersecurity practice provides ongoing research and advisory services to chief information security officers focused on protecting their companies’ assets.

BrainStorm

BrainStorm

BrainStorm Threat Defense takes a new human-focused approach to security awareness that traditional training lacks. It’s a cutting-edge platform to make your users more security savvy.

Mode Solutions

Mode Solutions

Mode guarantee IT performance where you need it most, creating seamless and secure solutions that will alleviate pressure from your business.

CertiProf

CertiProf

CertiProf has been enhancing professional lives since 2015, offering a wide range of IT certifications and agile framework training.

Center for Information Security Awareness (CFISA)

Center for Information Security Awareness (CFISA)

CFISA was formed by a group of academics, security and fraud experts to explore ways to increase security awareness among audiences, including consumers, employees, businesses and law enforcement.

Framework Security

Framework Security

With Framework Security, you get more than a consultancy; you get a partner dedicated to simplifying cybersecurity and protecting your business in the most efficient way possible.

Sec3

Sec3

Sec3 is a security and research firm providing bespoke audits and cutting edge tools to Web3 projects.

Actelis Networks

Actelis Networks

Actelis Networks is a market leader in cyber-hardened, rapid deployment networking solutions for wide-area IoT applications.