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DEF CON 2013 Highlights

The annual DEF CON® hacker conference came and went as swiftly as a light rain against the hot Las Vegas strip. Consumer tech was a big focus and speakers demonstrated how various network-connected gadgets, once hacked, could be controlled to affect the real, physical world. Here are some highlights from two particular lectures about the hacking of network-connected and radio-frequency identification (RFID) enabled devices that got much attention.

US-China Talks on Cyber Security: An Exercise in Futility

With the growing number of alleged cyber-attacks that are taking place between the United States and the People’s Republic of China, the talks in early June of 2013 between President Barrack Obama and President Xi Jinping were viewed as a much needed response to the crisis. Unfortunately, such steps may end in either half-hearted agreements or may collapse entirely under their own weight. Depressing as this outlook may be, such pessimism is rooted in the fact that cyber space, as a medium on which to expand national policy, is too good to pass up on for either party. Central to this idea is the fact that both countries have invested heavily in cyber space not only as a means of communication, but for economic growth as well.

The Convergence of Data Analytics and Security

A renewed sense of urgency to secure information, networks and electronic devices in order to thwart advanced hacking techniques loomed over the 2013 RSA conference floor in San Francisco. The harsh realization that traditional security measures simply don’t cut it anymore was confirmed by various keynotes and casual hallway conversations between peers.

Playing with Fire: The State of Cyber Attacks and Cyber Warfare

Following reports of cyber-attacks targeting the New York Times in January of 2013, a secretive legal review of the powers available to the president of the United States has brought to light the option of launching preventive cyber-attacks should credible evidence indicating an impending threat against the United States surface. In this context the United States reserves the right to use cyber weaponry with or without an existing state of war. While rhetoric concerning the growth of cyber threats has grown more prominent in the last three years, this is the first instance that a state has been reported to view cyber-instruments as a “preventive” or “deterrent” option. Though heavy investments have been made in the past years, there is no empirical evidence that demonstrates that the United States intends to utilize its cyber-capabilities as announced.