Cyber Warfare

TODO: Discussion of some topics and themes look at the listed attacks, see if there is a better database of attacks with more description of the specific attack.

Overview

Deep dive and discussion on the role of cyber in warfare and the implications for people as more people become capable of launching a cyber attack.

Purpose

Students will explore some of the more famous cyber attacks and discuss how countries, businesses, and individuals can work to keep themselves secure from attackers.

Objectives

Students will be able to:

• Identify important historical cyber attacks
• Explain the rationale for an attack
• Compare differences between state actors and other groups in a cyber attack

Preparation

Links

• For the Teacher

• For the Students

Vocabulary

Teaching Guide

Activity:

• Have students research alone or in pairs one of the following cyber attacks
• Students should fill out the guide and create a presentation based on the questions and their research.
• Finally, students will present their work to the class.

Cyber Attacks:

• Estonia 2007
• Syrian Bombing 2007
• Georgia 2008
• China in 2008
• Eastern Railway 2008
• Gaza Cyberwar 2008
• Google & China 2010
• Stuxnet

Activity

• Cyber Security Research

Watch: PBS Nova - Cyberwar Threat

• http://www.pbs.org/video/2365582515/

Wrap-up

• Cyber Security Reflection

  Discussion:

• What is the reason for engaging in cyber war for a non-nation? Why would a group choose to target a government’s computer systems?
  • Who should monitor this type of action?
• How should hackers be punished if they hack a government?
  • What if they are working for another government?
  • What if they don’t attack a government but instead attack a company or group?
  • What if the target is a terrible organization like a hate or terrorist group?

Assessment Questions

• What is the purpose of a cyber-attack?
• What type of damage can be done through a cyber-attack?
• What are the benefits of a cyber war over a traditional war?
• Cyber-attacks are not always perpetrated by nation-states like the US, Russia, China, etc. Who are some of the other groups that are not nations that are engaged in cyber warfare?

Extended Learning

Standards Alignment

License

Cyber Security Curriculum is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.