Cyberwar reality<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI) made the first physical
\ncontact in the cyberwar this month when a group of Portuguese
\nyouths sympathetic to the cause of East Timor separatists
\nallegedly tampered with its Internet homepage. The damage was
\nkept to a minimum, and the website was immediately repaired.<\/p>\n
This is not the first time an official Indonesian website on
\nthe Internet has been attacked by the same hackers. As reported
\nby Republika daily newspaper, previous victims include the sites
\nof the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Agency for the
\nDevelopment and Application of Technology, the National Institute
\nof Sciences and the state-run Airlangga University.<\/p>\n
The way the hackers arbitrarily picked targets suggest they
\nare not as much politically motivated, as simply a bunch of kids
\nout playing, or abusing, the cyber technology. Tampering the
\nwebsites belonging to education institutions serves no political
\npurpose at all.<\/p>\n
Still, it would be wrong to dismiss the hackers lightly or
\nunderestimate the potential damage they could have caused.<\/p>\n
In this cyberspace era, the Internet has become a powerful
\ntool to disseminate information, whether it is news or
\npropaganda. The Internet revolutionized information technology
\nbeyond most people's imagination only a few years ago. Not only
\ncan news now be delivered as it happens, the technology is also
\navailable on an even wider scale than previous information media.
\nThis can only enhance democracy.<\/p>\n
But there is a downside to the Internet technology. Anyone
\nwith access to a computer and a telephone line can have access to
\nthe Internet, including bulletin boards and news groups. This
\nmeans that all kinds of news and information can be found on the
\nInternet and one can even create their own homepage. This often
\nmakes it difficult to distinguish between news and propaganda.<\/p>\n
This is one of the reasons why many Indonesian government
\nagencies feel compelled to open their own websites. When ABRI
\ndecided to launch its homepage in 1995, for example, one of its
\ngoals was to counter what it called "garbage" information in
\ncyberspace that sought to discredit Indonesia. ABRI and other
\ngovernment agencies have launched counter operations in the war
\nof propaganda on the Internet. The Internet has now become an
\ninseparable tool for Indonesia in its diplomacy.<\/p>\n
One Internet expert said government agencies have not fully
\nexploited the advantages of the Net. They have not moved beyond
\nestablishing their websites, downloading data and information,
\nand hoping that people would come to them and read.<\/p>\n
They can certainly do a lot more than that.<\/p>\n
In this cyberspace era, in which anyone who has control or
\naccess over information wields power, mastering the information
\ntechnology has become even more imperative. The recent hackers
\nincident exposed weaknesses in the security of the government's
\nhomepages. It was even more disconcerting to see that some people
\nhave retaliated by attacking the homepages of the hackers. While
\nthe action of the hackers was deplorable and goes against
\nestablished Internet ethics, retaliation in kind does not make it
\nright. Like in any war, there are rules and ethics to observe in
\na cyberwar.<\/p>\n
But there is an even more important factor than having access
\nand mastering the Internet technology in the war of propaganda:
\ncredibility. One can establish a state-of-the-art homepage that is
\nfoolproof from hackers, but it is meaningless if one does not
\nhave credibility. This, more than anything else, ultimately
\ndecides who wins the cyberwar.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/cyberwar-reality-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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