Cyber threat on the rise as terrorists recruit computer specialists, says OSCE expert

GARMISCH, Germany, 10 April 2008 - Terrorist use of the Internet is on the rise, and terrorist organizations may employ cyber attacks alongside attacking physical targets, the head of the OSCE Action against Terrorism Unit warned today.

"The Internet is user blind. It offers many advantages to legitimate users but also to those, like terrorists, who seek to use it for criminal purposes. Terrorist organizations are specifically recruiting computer specialists and have been training their operatives in computer sciences," said Raphael Perl, the Head of the OSCE Action against Terrorism Unit.

He was speaking at the Second Information Security Forum held in Garmisch. The event was organized by the Moscow State University, the University of Karlsruhe, the German-Russian Forum, and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, with the participation of the Marshall European Centre for Security Studies.

Some 120 experts from the private and public sector discussed the internationalization of Internet governance, information security and business continuity, and international co-operation in countering cyber crimes and the threat of cyber terrorism.

"The Internet today is one of the key facilitators of terrorism, the principal means whereby terrorist organizations disseminate propaganda, raise and transfer funds, indoctrinate followers, recruit and train new operatives," said Perl.

He expressed concern about the "potential conjunction of cyber attacks with traditional physical attacks, or the launching of cyber attacks in times of major natural disaster crisis".

"In addition to the disparity of legal environments and practices between countries, the sophistication, speed, virtuality, and the relative anonymity that characterize the Internet and computer technologies are a major challenge to law enforcement. More needs to be done to strengthen national forensic capabilities to act quickly against terrorist abuse of the Internet and / or to protect vital information infrastructures from cyber attacks," said Perl.

"Just like it takes a thief to catch a thief, it takes a computer specialist to catch a cyber-criminal."

He stressed the importance of public private partnerships with the industry and civil society to counter the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes, saying: "The private sector is our most natural ally in combating the use of Internet for terrorist purposes. More needs to be done as well for the development of an active, educated and vigilant civil society, which is essential for effective counter-terrorism measures regarding the cyberspace."