:: Deepquest ::

According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the United States isn’t prepared to respond to an attack on its computer networks. An exercise conducted earlier this week found that critical communication and electrical power systems could be seriously affected.

The Cyber ShockWave exercise was conducted to ascertain how the government could develop a real-time response to a wide-scale cybercrisis. During the test, a group of national security and cybersecurity experts were forced to grapple with specific doomsday scenarios.

The Tuesday simulation was created by 10 former White House advisors and other top officials and the results don’t bode well. According to the officials, the U.S. isn’t sufficiently prepared for an attack of this magnitude.

Some of the main problems officials faced were how to deal with a malware attack that spread via people’s personal computers and smartphones. Additionally, the scenario involving a complete power grid collapse caused a cascading technical failure that hampered officials’ abilities to handle the situation.

Officials who took part in the test agreed that no grand plan exists, however some of the suggestions being brought to the president include federalizing the National Guard and deploying troops to guard power lines and prevent civil unrest.

from Allheadlines