Cyberwarfare, 2008-2018

Abstract

Cyber attacks have for some time been no longer in the realm of fiction or film, but a cause for concern in the real world. Although annoying acts such as website defacements and virus spread have become fairly common, the cyber attacks in the Baltic state of Estonia in early 2007 managed to disrupt that country' s financial system for a few weeks. There were concerns that this could be just the tip of the iceberg in computer network attacks; certainly, it was an event that showed how effective attacks on IT networks and systems could be, even at national level. Certainly, the consequences would be much more significant if those attacks had occurred on a greater scale, attacking central computers in government, policing and defence, in a nation or group of nations. It has been suggested that those attacks were a foretaste of what dedicated hackers belonging to terrorist groups or hostile powers could do, constituting a new form of warfare - cyberwarfare. Such threats would be far more serious than those of amateur hackers, despite the inconvenience these have caused. Furthermore, professional hacking groups or cells are likely to be far harder to repel, locate, close down, capture and convict. How can you compete with this?

In this new defence market report, Cyberwarfare, 2008-2018, visiongain analyses the cyberwarfare market in detail, covering its range from defensive to offensive capabilities. The cyberwarfare market is already large and growing, with most of the spending at present devoted to cyber defence. Visiongain expects the market to grow consistently from 2008 onwards. Rumours of developing cyber offensive capabilities and actions will further induce nations to do more to protect their vital networks, as well as stimulate the development of cyberwarfare capabilities as a natural progression in defence. The interest is strong among many nations to develop or improve their abilities to deal with cyberwarfare, providing significant opportunities for companies involved in computer protection and IT systems hardware, software and services in general. Are you and your company prepared to capture a key market share in these countries? How will your company best target these attacks?

There is now a realisation among many governments and militaries that "cyberspace" has become a new battleground, possibly on par with other recognised battle spaces in conventional warfare and defensive operations.

Why you should buy this report:

This new visiongain report - Cyberwarfare, 2008-2018 - describes the present and potential market for defence cybersecurity and related defensive operations, with relevant data and informed opinion. This information is equally valuable to both defence procurement operations and to relevant technology providers.

• Overview of the threats from cyber attacks as well as key tools and solutions.
• A survey of cyber attack incidents and resulting programmes in key countries in Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific.
• A discussion of factors that influence the development of the cyberwarfare market.
• Key companies involved in the cyberwarfare market, including government and military cybersecurity.
• Forecasts for the 12 leading national markets.
• Experts' views on the issues and outlook for cyberwarfare, including 5 full transcriptions of interviews with leading authorities.

Visiongain believes that the cyberwarfare market has the capability to expand steadily from the present onwards throughout the foreseeable future. Governments and private organisations are preparing for the real threats of attacks at innumerable potential locations in their vast information systems networks. The increasing sophistication of, and growing reliance, on computer systems and networks by the military, government agencies and critical infrastructure makes security there imperative. Potentially, hostile forces could cause more disruption by those means than by conventional military and terrorist attacks, especially with heightened physical security after the September 11 attacks in the US and later bombings in Madrid and London.

Visiongain believes that cybersecurity is among the key areas in which militaries and governments will invest significantly, despite the global economic downturn in 2008. Conventional thinking in governments and militaries is that prevention is far better than dealing with the consequences of breached information systems, whether the purpose is spying, disruption or destruction. The risks are simply too great, with IT security companies benefiting from this growing and potentially vast market. Furthermore, IT security is a fast-developing industry, where technological developments in hardware and software, combined with the development of hacking and virus-spreading techniques, demands constant development and updating, with large potential for long-term repeat sales of products and services.