US cyber-attackslll to disrupt the Islamic State's communications and overload their
networks could force the militant group to use Older technologies that are easier for the
US to intercept, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Monday.
Carter and Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, provided details
about how the Pentagon is using its new, aggressive cyber campaign as part of military
operations against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.
"As we disrupt the ISIL communications via cyber or other methods, sometimes we do
drive them to Other means, " Carter told Pentagon reporters. "Sometimes, those Other
means are easier for us to listen to.
US officials told The Associated Press last week that the military had increased cyber
operations against the group. The operations include efforts by US Cyber Command to
prevent the group from using the Internet and social media to communicate and
distribute propaganda aimed at attracting and inspiring recruits. The efforts could also
force IS back to technologies like cell phones to communicate.
Dunford said that using the computer-based attacks alongside bombings and other
military actions allows the US to "both physically and virtually isolate" the group and
limits its ability to command and control its fighters.
That type Of coordinated offensive, he said, will be used to support Iraqi security forces
as they try to retake the northern city of Mosul.
The surge of computer-based military operations by US Cyber Command began shortly
after Carter prodded commanders last month to accelerate the fight against the Islamic
State group on the cyber front.
Dunford and Carter didn't provide a lot Of details Monday. Dunford said the US doesn't
want to reveal too much.
"We don't want the enemy to know when, where and how we're conducting cyber
operations," said Dunford. "We don't want them to have information that will allow them
to adapt over time. We want them to be surprised when we conduct cyber operations."
Citation:
"US Says
Cyber-Attacks Can Expose Islamic State Communications."
Response: This
article talks about a new method that the US is trying to use against the
Islamic State. From what the article says, this seems to be a very reasonable
option that could completely change the war on terrorism. I think the article
has bias towards the US's plans and against the Islamic State and many readers
would share their bias. I think this article did not give a very large amount
of information on this topic because the US does not want to disclose much
information on the plans but there is enough in this article to give us an idea
of what is going on in this war on terrorism from the US side of things.
Overall, I think the article had some areas that could have been improved but
was also pretty well-written.
I completely agree with the article with the fact that cyber-attacks are the future of warfare, and more specifically war on terror. It could possibly be an endless for the US and other countries fighting the IS if they were not to use cyber-attacks, which could further reinforce the fact that IS still has a lot of power. By using cyber-attacks, IS becomes a smaller threat and their power is limited. In reference to bias, I agree that their might be too much bias towards the US government, however I think that there is little bias against the IS. This is because the focus of the article is on how progressive the Pentagon is and how their accomplishments are boosting them in the war against IS, but I think most people would agree that IS is a harmful organization that does intend to add value to humanity. Your response definitely brought out some key points from the article and focused on the objective of the US. Great choice of an article.
ReplyDeleteThis article is quite interesting. The U.S is definitely taking the move in isolating terrorist actions such as the ones imposed by the IS. It is clearly shown that by use of these cyber attacks they have a high chance of exposing all sorts of information the IS might try to leak, especially information passed out via internet. The cyber attacks is just one step that can save so many lives, and the US military seems confident in their stance. I do agree that the author showed some bias towards the US government but again the article is presenting information about the US government so it would be hard to avoid. Overall, great article!
ReplyDeleteDespite the aforementioned uniqueness of these 'new' cyber-attacks, I would question why the U.S. has not been using them up until this point. Because based on the article and many others like it concerning this issue, I would be led to believe that the U.S. has already been using such technologies in order to counter the reach of the Islamic State. If this is in fact not true and these cyber-attacks are just now starting to be performed, then the U.S. hasn't been doing as much as they claimed in the war against ISIL. What I would assume from all of this is that they have already been performing these attacks, but needed something seemingly new to offer people to put their minds at ease and convince them that the U.S. really is doing something to address this issue.
ReplyDeleteIf what this article is claiming is 100% true, then the fight against terrorism with specifically IS is about to radically change. However, Emmanuel states a very good point that these 'new' cyber attacks may just be a strategy to relax people. It helps assuage the panic on terrorism. All in all, the U.S should take every opportunity to efficiently use cyber attacks. By using them, they can get information on terrorist groups and potentially save a great amount of destruction. Additionally, you did a good job of identifying the bias this article had towards America. Although, the title itself had bias, so anyone who clicked on it probably held similar views. Well done overall.
ReplyDeleteISIL is unique in demonstrating a level of technological sophistication that is unheard of in most terrorist groups. Vibrant and active social media pages, an aggressive online recruiting campaign, and the occasional shocking video of a beheading all speak to an effective and well-thought-out cyber strategy. It's no wonder, then, that the United States would seek to frustrate and disable ISIL's capabilities in this area.
ReplyDeleteHowever, Defense Secretary Carter's words ring empty. To me, this "new" cyber war against ISIL seems to be a well-timed press release to draw attention away from what has largely been an ineffective bombing campaign, given to the press just as a truce in Syria begins to take effect.
The author of the article seems optimistic about the new developments an intensified cyber front could bring, speculating more on its potentially positive outcomes than perhaps its impact realistically.
This was a really interesting article! In this day in age technological advancement is really our main focus. This article is a great example of how our focus on technology is starting to ease it's way into military tactics, especially when fighting the war on terror. I agree with you when you said that this article was biased towards the US. This article focuses solely on the positive possibilities and the hopeful outcomes of this new cyber movement. However, in doing this the author portrays IS to be weak, predictable, and unable to fight against any sort of cyber attack. I think that all of those assumptions would prove to be untrue. One of the most dangerous things we can do is underestimate IS. Like I said, really great article and great response!
ReplyDeleteGreat article choice, Caroline. I do see the bias toward the US government and against the IS, and agree that the cyber attacks are the next step in fighting terrorism. In fact, if we dont fight back in this way we might lose altogether. This one of the ways terrorism is getting a grip on the world today and we need to counteract it. The author of this article seems optimistic in what is to come with this "new" form of cyber warfare. But haven't the US been already using technology of the day to counter-attack terrorism? To me it seems like there is always a new technology coming out to fight, find, or fry terrorists so this particular "new" technology is not surprising.
ReplyDeleteWhat this article lacks, is that the whole idea of cyber attacking terrorist groups, such as ISIS, is failing. Already we've seen in the news that the hacker group" anonomyous" has already declared war against them. However, like you said, they did not disclose any information. This is mainly due to their failure. Your response to be honest, seemed very vague and shallow. Perhaps next time go into a bit more dept and research in what the article, and the true meaning behind it means.
ReplyDeleteHow often do we hear about the new and improved solution to end all conflict? As some of my fellow students mentioned, I doubt the immediate effect of the cyber attacks. If the US really had the technology to attack in the way the article describes, we should have seen the effects much earlier.
ReplyDeleteThough it may seem like an effective way of combat, one that I believe is becoming even more so in our modern age, I think it will not cripple ISIL to the degree that we hope it will. I remain optimistic about the conflict but it seems far from over.
Interesting article, but I agree that they are trying to hide more than what they should. I find it fascinating how people are taking modern technology and using it to implement fear from the other side and combat other countries in a different way. Unfortunately, I see how this would, and perhaps did, fail. I agree with your bias though and I found your response adequate. Good choice and good job!
ReplyDeleteI would agree with the past few responses, that this cyber attack will not be completely effective or immediate. I still believe that this could one day be the best way to combat terrorist attacks. One of the reasons this article could have with held information is because they do not have all they are claiming to hold. This article seems to try to impress fear in the IS, but may be an empty threat. This is a very interesting article and there are many ways to interpret the information that has been shared.
ReplyDeleteI totally disagree with the last few comments. I don't think that the American "threats" are indeed even threats, and they're certainly not vain. Cyber space is a battlefield of the future, and that future is today; it's becoming an integral part of everything we do, and it is very much an area capable of containing conflict. It may seem a little far fetched right now, but think about how people probably used to think of areal warfare; planes were flimsy and slow and inconsistent, how could you fight in them? Today warfare revolves around air-superiority. It's a very realistic possibility in my opinion. Also, the US isn't withholding too much information. Do we say they're withholding too much when they don't tell us their attack strategy is? Or where they plan to place troops? Or even how their combat technology works? As I said before, Cyber warfare is becoming just as legitimate as traditional warfare, and details about it should be treated with just as much care.
ReplyDeleteGreat article and good job on analyzing the article. I do agree with the author being biased for the US cyberattacks and I agree most people would also be biased towards this view since most everyone is against ISIL. Though the article presents the situation well and encourages everyone there might be a possibility of winning the war against ISIL. I do think the author might be a little too optimistic. Since we know how dangerous the war is and how long this conflict has been going on for, I think it would be difficult to believe the statement that the US might win against this conflict. Though I do agree the US doesn't want to disclose too much information, it does make me wonder why they wouldn't share more details on this matter. The matter seems to be a little too broad and doesn't really elaborate on any key ideas, though this could be a cause of keeping it discrete. Again great analysis on your response.
ReplyDeleteGreat article! I find it interesting how the military is turning to cyber attacks. This looks like a promising step forward in this struggle. I do agree that there is no mention of any potential downfalls to this plan which expresses a bias, The article portrays IS as being very limited in their knowledge. The article expresses that they don't want to share very much information about this new plan because they want their attacks to be a surprise. I feel like even the information in this article defeats that purpose. By publishing this article IS knows the general concept of the planned cyber attacks. Very interesting article and good response!
ReplyDeleteGood job. You identified the bias of the article well. I think cyber anything is a huge issue nowadays and especially cyber warfare. I also think that the article didn't really convey lots of information. I think it would've been better if you've done some research on it. Overall I think it was good.
ReplyDeleteGreat response:) Your response showed your understanding of the article! I definitely think that the article does have bias towards the US as you pointed them out. It was overall great but the formatting of your page was difficult to read.... Great job!
ReplyDeleteThis is indeed a very interesting article and new approach to the war on terrorism. Its relevancy almost makes me wonder why no one has seriously considered this option before. As Caroline mentions it is very important that not too much information is leaked about how the US plans to go about carrying out this new plan. As mentioned before there is a definite bias towards both with common assumptions on both sides. I like that the world is using this modern rush for technology finally to their advantage.
ReplyDeleteHey, good job on summarizing this article, I believe you did a decent job. However, I believe your choice on an article was a bit poor due to its ambiguous subject and its obvious bias. When it comes to my opinion on cyber attacks against IS I believe it can give them a disadvantage. Then again, I also believe cyber attacks wouldn't give the IS a significant blow. Overall, I believe this article is a bit lacking in info but I could understand that this subject is bit sensitive. Furthermore, on to the subject on your performance, I believe you've done a good job on stating your opinion and your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteInteresting article choice. Cyber operations are continuing to grow and develop to become more effective and far-reaching. Allowing the US to cripple the enemy from afar, without endangering any soldiers. There doesn't appear to be much bias within the article, with a slight favor towards the US side. I think you did a good job analyzing the article and writing a response.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great article, I love the detail used. And it amazes me that the US is able to block out there communications. I think it would be great to stop ISIS and doing this will help. This article is very evenly balanced between the two people.
ReplyDeleteI feel like the US has always been targeting ISIS on social media but they just now made it known to every that they are doing this. You say in your reply that it's a "new" technique but is it really? I am just wondering if you actually think it's new or it's just new to us.
ReplyDeleteGood response. I find it weird how ISIS is using social media to get people to join them. It makes me wonder how to people contact them and if they are actually wanting to join how does ISIS know which people are serious or not? I wonder why the government doesn't pretend to be someone wanting to join and than get information on them. I agree with how you presented the authors perspective. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteI feel that the US is always has eyes on ISIS on the internet. I also feel that ISIS already have known this. The government is probably releasing this info to make the public feel safer and informed. I agree with you that the US definitely does not want to reveal too much.
ReplyDeleteI think that using cyber attacks against ISIS is a good method. It reminded my of how the marines used the Navajo's language in the world war two battle against Japan.The Japanese weren't able to crack the code. That event made me think that ISIS won't be able to known about the hacking that is being used.
ReplyDeleteThat was a good response. I agree with you that the article was biased. I thinks its pretty amazing that they are using this technology to find all these things out. Its scary to think that they are getting into all these other technology that is ours. I wouldn't want to be any of the victims. Good article choice!
ReplyDeleteCyber attacks will revolutionize warfare. The internet has changed the dynamic of warfare allowing soldiers to communicate with others and back to there military base. That being said when its compromised this renders a lot of soldiers stranded. We need to keep upgrading our cyber systems to prevent further hacks and such.
ReplyDeleteInteresting choice on the article, this is hard to do because there is very little detail on the operation. I find it cool that the US is not saying what they are doing to hack ISIS, but they believe they can put them back before the radio era. But ISIS' perspective will be hating this, because it will set them back.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading this article. I found it interesting how the U.S. government can hack ISIS's profiles and stop them from recruiting more people. Hacking them can also stop them from spreading their ideas. This article shows the two sides of ISIS and the U.S.
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting. I like how the U.S. is using different tactics to try to fight ISIS. This made me think about what else the U.S. can do to fight ISIS. The perspective is very equal.
ReplyDeleteThis article was quite an interesting choice. You did a good job summarizing the article! I wouldn't have thought that ISIS would use social media to get others to join them. I found that a little odd since the U.S. or any other country could easily hack their system. With ISIS being found on social media, this seems to make them more vulnerable? I'm not quite sure, but it still seems risky for them.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading the article and learning more about ISIL and the cyber-attacks. I can understand why they are not sharing much information about their plans for ISIL. Yet they are still keeping us up to date on what is happening. Also, I agree with you in saying that it is biased towards the U.S.'s plan for ISIL. Overall I thought it was a good article.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your response and how the US keeps up with the social media on ISIS. I also agree with you that the article didn't give us a lot if information because the US doesn't want to say to much. They also have to be cautious on what they say and put out on social media. Overall I like your interpretation and perspective of the article.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting article, and I agree with your response about how the U.S deals with ISIS on social media. I agree with you that the U.S will not release anything else on what they are doing, so ISIS doesn't find out what they are doing. I think you did a good job with your response and perspective of the article.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your view of the US is taking a responsible role of action, but at the same time keeping it very privet. I also do believe that the US government will not have any further information on it, at least not tell it is over with. I find your response well written and have enjoyed your perspective on this article.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your view on how the U.S. is dealing with ISIS on social media platforms. I think it's a good thing that most things will be kept private on how we are dealing with it. If we release too much information ISIS will be able to find out our tactics.
ReplyDeleteInteresting article, I agree with your response how the U.S deals with ISIS on social media. I agree with you that it a very reasonable to change option of terrorism. I like how they're using technology to the go into stuffs like that and know that the other side id trying to do. Overall I like your perspective of the article.
ReplyDeleteI like the article that you found. It feels as if you found how the U.S. found out about these "cyber-attacks". Perhaps there may be an opportunity to spy on ISIS and see what they're up to. But, here's the question: how can they develop that kind of technology to interrupt ISIS's communications? Overall, I think this is a good article that you found.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading this article, and I agree on the fact that "cyber-attacks are the future of warfare. I think that being able to block the commutations from ISIS is a great thing to do but is there really away to block all commutation with ISIS?
ReplyDelete