. The United States, France, Russia, Israel and China migrated physical warfare to virtuality and have cyberweapons, as mentioned in McAfee's fifth annual report on virtual criminology.In the report, McAfee President and CEO Dave DeWalt mentions that several countries are actively involved in this virtual arms race, preparing sophisticated attack techniques. "Today weapons are not nuclear, but virtual, and everyone must adapt to these threats," he says.
The attacks of the countries involved in this new form of warfare seem to be motivated by political objectives, rather than by an economic benefit.
The specialists of the security company assure that governments must be prepared for this situation, they also propose that it is vital to generate an open debate between the government and the private sector, since future cyberattacks targeting essential infrastructure could be devastating.
"Over the next 20 to 30 years, cyberattacks will increasingly be a component of warfare," said William Crowell, former deputy director of the U.S. National Security Agency, cited in the virtual criminology report. "What I can foresee is whether networks will be so dominant and unprotected that cyber warfare operations will be unparalleled."
According to the report, the attacks target government networks and this type of attack can turn into real devastation. Likewise, these offensives are also aimed at electricity transmission networks, telecommunications, transport, finance and water supply.
