I Am The Internet
Today, we will look at the life of someone very close to us, someone we see
every day: The internet.
every day: The internet.
Like all humble beginnings, this one was small too. The history of the Internet
begins with the development of electronic computers in the 1950s. Initial concepts
of wide area networking originated in several computer science laboratories in
the United States, United Kingdom, and France. In 1976, the internet was used
as an official means of exchange of government information, with Queen
Elizabeth being the first head of state to send an email. Soon by the 1980’s Tim
Berners-Lee came up with the World Wide Web, which is the internet as we
know today. As time went on the internet grew more and more popular until it
reached a point where the internet was considered a basic necessity. The very
lives of people began to revolve around the internet. The internet became a
source of livelihood, entertainment and a means of exchange of information.
E-commerce was the trend of the decade, with Amazon starting operations, by
1994. Now everything happens through the internet, from election campaigns to
crowdfunded projects that aim to solve problems ranging from global hunger to
poverty.
begins with the development of electronic computers in the 1950s. Initial concepts
of wide area networking originated in several computer science laboratories in
the United States, United Kingdom, and France. In 1976, the internet was used
as an official means of exchange of government information, with Queen
Elizabeth being the first head of state to send an email. Soon by the 1980’s Tim
Berners-Lee came up with the World Wide Web, which is the internet as we
know today. As time went on the internet grew more and more popular until it
reached a point where the internet was considered a basic necessity. The very
lives of people began to revolve around the internet. The internet became a
source of livelihood, entertainment and a means of exchange of information.
E-commerce was the trend of the decade, with Amazon starting operations, by
1994. Now everything happens through the internet, from election campaigns to
crowdfunded projects that aim to solve problems ranging from global hunger to
poverty.
However, the internet isn’t a safe and peaceful place anymore. The internet was
attacked by a darker, more malicious side of itself. As everything began to be
stored in the internet’s digital storage, more and more information began to be
vulnerable to attack. As the internet became an easier medium to spread
trepidation, cyber attacks became a common plague infecting the internet.
According to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), cyber terrorism is any
“premeditated, politically motivated attack against information, computer systems,
computer programs and data which results in violence against noncombatant
targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents”. There are many instances
of cyber terrorism in the internet’s history:
- Pakistani Cyber Army is the name taken by a group of hackers who are known
for their defacement of websites, particularly Indian, Chinese, and Israeli
companies and governmental organizations, claiming to represent Pakistani
nationalist and Islamic interests. The group is thought to have been active since
at least 2008 and maintains an active presence on social media, especially
Facebook. Its members have claimed responsibility for the hijacking of websites
belonging to Acer, BSNL, India's CBI, Central Bank, and the State Government
of Kerala.
- Yahoo has a massive database of past and present users. In 2016 the
company revealed that in a 2013 attack over a billion user account were hacked.
Then in 2014, another 500 million accounts were compromised.
The Yahoo hacking scandal is without a doubt one of the largest security
breaches of the modern day and is significant in how many ordinary people
were affected.
- In the most widespread cyber attack ever, hackers managed to gain access to
the NHS' computer system in mid-2017, causes chaos in the UK's medical
system. The same hacking tools were used to attack worldwide freight
company FedEx and infected computers in 150 countries.
- Ransomware affectionately named "WannaCry" was delivered via email in the
form of an attachment. Once a user clicked on the attachment, the virus was
spread through their computer, locking up all of their files and demanding money
before they could be accessed again. As many as 300,000 computers were
infected with the virus.
“premeditated, politically motivated attack against information, computer systems,
computer programs and data which results in violence against noncombatant
targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents”. There are many instances
of cyber terrorism in the internet’s history:
- Pakistani Cyber Army is the name taken by a group of hackers who are known
for their defacement of websites, particularly Indian, Chinese, and Israeli
companies and governmental organizations, claiming to represent Pakistani
nationalist and Islamic interests. The group is thought to have been active since
at least 2008 and maintains an active presence on social media, especially
Facebook. Its members have claimed responsibility for the hijacking of websites
belonging to Acer, BSNL, India's CBI, Central Bank, and the State Government
of Kerala.
- Yahoo has a massive database of past and present users. In 2016 the
company revealed that in a 2013 attack over a billion user account were hacked.
Then in 2014, another 500 million accounts were compromised.
The Yahoo hacking scandal is without a doubt one of the largest security
breaches of the modern day and is significant in how many ordinary people
were affected.
- In the most widespread cyber attack ever, hackers managed to gain access to
the NHS' computer system in mid-2017, causes chaos in the UK's medical
system. The same hacking tools were used to attack worldwide freight
company FedEx and infected computers in 150 countries.
- Ransomware affectionately named "WannaCry" was delivered via email in the
form of an attachment. Once a user clicked on the attachment, the virus was
spread through their computer, locking up all of their files and demanding money
before they could be accessed again. As many as 300,000 computers were
infected with the virus.
 |
| wanna cry's encryption screen |
of hackers aligning themselves with the Kremlin. The group, Transnistria, used
a variety of attack methods. These included botnets and ping floods. It is
believed that the relocation of a grave marker significant to Russians was what
triggered the attacks. They were pretty sophisticated and caused devastating
shutdowns of government websites. So the Estonians believe the attacks were
supported by the Russian government itself. The effects of the attacks were
widely felt. Even normal citizens were unable to use ATMs and online banking
services.
 |
| estonia was rocked by cyber terror attacks |
These are just a few of the many cyber crimes taking place every year. Only
human vigilance can stop the safe space that is the internet to spiral into
darkness.
human vigilance can stop the safe space that is the internet to spiral into
darkness.
The internet keeps getting harassed by human greed every day. Only time will
tell whether she will be vanquished by her darker self or emerge victoriously.
tell whether she will be vanquished by her darker self or emerge victoriously.
Al Jazeera
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