US Army is itching for cyber war

How to make pre-emptive strikes and influence people.

The US military thinks it should be allowed to declare war on whoever attacks it over the Internet, even if it does not know who that is.

US Army Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander, who is the Obama administration's nominee to take on additional duties as head of the new Cyber Command, said the US should attack countries such as Iran and North Korea if it thinks they might launch online attacks.

He said that even with the clear understanding that the US could experience damage to its infrastructure, it must be prepared to fight through in the worst case scenario.

According to a Senate document obtained by the Associated Press, Alexander said that the US had already "responded to threats, intrusions and even attacks against us in cyberspace." He admitted that it was unclear if those actions had scared anyone.

In cyberspace, he said, it is difficult to deliver an effective response if the attacker's identity is not known. But that did not really matter as commanders have clear rights to self-defence.

After all coppers don't have to know the identity of a shooter in order to shoot back. Of course coppers are usually shooting at someone who is at the scene of a crime.

However a cyber attack might be conducted by someone who is in a different place and has framed another person or organisation. Also it is not clear whether an attack is conducted by an individual or a government.

Under Alexander's rules of engagement, his fearsome US cyber warriors should have wiped out the UK after Gary McKinnon hacked into US defence computers looking for pictures of UFOs.