Re: New York Red Cross Needs Tech assistance!

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

Forwarded from: kelley <kwalker2 () gte net>

At 03:05 AM 9/18/01 -0500, you wrote:
> Forwarded from: Darren Reed <darrenr () reed wattle id au>
>
> Forgive me for being insensitive, but will someone please explain what
> the World Trade Centre disaster has to do with Information Security ?


Disaster management and disaster recovery planning. I have already had
requests to organize the re-writing of policies to include: personnel,
replacing; personnel, delayed trauma, and so forth.

Otherwise, see Stratfor's latest, below. I didn't include the
attachment, but I trust our fearless William The Conqueror will oblige
if he sees fit.

Kelley

___________________________________________________________________


                             S T R A T F O R

                     THE GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE COMPANY

                         http://www.stratfor.com
___________________________________________________________________

                                                   17 September 2001


   -> ON OUR WEBSITE TODAY:

       * Opposition to Taliban May Unite Iran and U.S.
       http://www.stratfor.com/home/0109172300.htm

       * The Intelligence War
       http://www.stratfor.com/home/0109170410.htm

       * Defense Spending Potential Rescue For Economy
       http://www.stratfor.com/home/0109171500.htm

___________________________________________________________________

Is American Infrastructure at Risk?

2120 GMT, 010917

Summary

The financial and air transportation industries will feel the
aftershocks of the Sept. 11 attacks for years. If terrorists did
not fully anticipate this while planning the attacks, they are
certainly aware of it now. This raises the possibility that the
perpetrators may shift future target sets away from pure terror
targets toward vital infrastructure, including oil refineries and
bridges.

Analysis

Stock markets in the United States reopened Sept. 17 for the
first time since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on Washington,
D.C., and New York, and air traffic began to return to normal.
The Dow Jones average and NASDAQ, however, both fell by more than
5 percent, with airline stocks taking particularly strong hits.

The effects of Sept. 11 will be apparent for some time in the
American financial and transportation sectors and around the
globe. The question now is whether these far-reaching
ramifications were intended by or incidental to the attackers'
plans. The answer may shed light on whether more attacks may
follow and what the targets might be. A campaign against
important American infrastructure -- such as communications and
power installations -- could be in the works.

Unlike the Sept. 11 suicide strikes, which shut the United States
down for a week, a sustained campaign against vital
infrastructure could have effects unseen in the United States
since the Civil War.

Following the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, the
United States has significantly enhanced security procedures at
airports, military facilities and federal buildings. Cities
around the nation have also heightened security around potential
targets, including high-rise office buildings and local
government facilities. It is likely the attackers would have
anticipated these changes.

In the past, the expectation of heightened security made
perpetrators of large-scale terrorist attacks slip into obscurity
after the hits and lie low for a year or two before striking
again. And they rarely used the same method in rapid succession
as security responses rose to match the initial assault tactics.

Although this hit-and-run method could be repeated this time, the
scale and planning of the Sept. 11 operation, the apparent
training of the terrorists and the implications of the attack do
not reflect typical patterns. Investigators believe the
operatives were in place for months or even years, blending in
with local society and waiting patiently for the time of the
attack. And unlike many suicide bombers, they were well-trained
and educated.

The success of the strikes in New York can be measured in many
ways, from the attackers' point of view. First, the towers
symbolized the financial might of the United States. More than
that, their location in the heart of a multinational metropolis
represented the global financial system. This is why the World
Trade Center was the target of a 1993 bombing as well.

Beyond symbolism, the sheer size of the towers and the number of
people in and around them made them ideal targets for sowing fear
in the United States.

But the attacks are having an even deeper ripple effect: the
temporary shutdown of the U.S. financial and transportation
infrastructure. Trading on U.S. stock markets was delayed four
days, and the residual financial repercussions reached well
beyond the trading floor. Airline transportation was seriously
disrupted. Talk of increased security, fewer passengers and
reduced schedules and layoffs are circulating throughout the
industry.

If the culprits did not fully anticipate these aftershocks, they
can see them clearly now. This raises the possibility that those
responsible may shift their sights away from pure terror targets
-- such heavily populated buildings or sports stadiums -- toward
vital infrastructure targets.

If the goal of the attack was merely symbolic -- designed to
terrorize Americans and invigorate Islamic militant forces around
the globe -- secondary or tertiary cells in the United States may
well emerge to strike other symbolic or populous civilian
targets. This would stir social chaos, but it would not
necessarily seriously impede the nation's ability to operate.
Israel faces suicide bombings and civil unrest, Spain is racked
with bombings and the United Kingdom deals with a troubled
Northern Ireland, yet these states continue to function.

Attacks on infrastructure would be much more disruptive, however.
Whether intentionally or not, the Sept. 11 attacks have shaken
air transportation in the United States and around the world for
the foreseeable future. The targeting of infrastructure --
bridges across the Mississippi and other major rivers, oil
refineries, storage facilities and pipelines, ports and rail
lines, telecommunications towers and energy grids -- could
seriously destabilize the United States.

Whether the groups related to the attackers pursue one or both of
these courses will depend on their networks in the United States.
The government is now coordinating a massive campaign to track
down the people involved in or linked to the Sept. 11 attacks and
other terrorist cells. The magnitude of the attacks and the scope
of investigations suggests that a broader network of so-called
"sleepers" -- terrorists who blend in with society for months or
even years before being activated -- may well exist in the United
States.

The wide net being cast for all conceivable suspects related to
this case and past or potential attacks raises the likelihood
that members of these sleeper cells may well be picked up. If
this occurs, it will be up to the handlers of those cells to
determine if the group should remain secret, try to disperse or
second-wave assault on the United States and its allies.
unconventional methods used, the United States may be in for a
sustained campaign on its own soil -- one that could aim at the
very heart of the infrastructure networks across the nation.

__________________________________________________________________


--
Kelley Walker
Organizational Researcher/Technical Writer
Interpact, Inc.
http://www.interpactinc.com/



-
ISN is currently hosted by Attrition.org

To unsubscribe email majordomo () attrition org with 'unsubscribe isn' in the BODY
of the mail.