by Bobby Akart
Cyber Warfare
Prepping for Tomorrow Series
A Preparedness Guide by
Bobby Akart
&
The Staff of Freedom Preppers
Copyright Information
© 2015 Freedom Preppers Inc. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of Bobby Akart and Freedom Preppers Inc.
Contents
Dedications
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Foreword by Author Steven Konkoly
About Cyber Warfare and the Prepping for Tomorrow Series
Epigraph
PART ONE What is Cyber Warfare?
Chapter One Cyber Terminology
Chapter Two Recent Cyber Skirmishes
Chapter Three The Fourth Dimension of Warfare
PART TWO The History and Early Uses of Cyber Warfare
Chapter Four History of Cyber Warfare
Chapter Five Significant Events in the History of Cyber Warfare
PART THREE Present day use of Cyber Warfare
Chapter Six Major Players
PART FOUR United States Policy, Problem of Attribution, Defense Department Preparations
Chapter Seven United States Policy Stance; The Five Pillars
Chapter Eight The Problem of Attribution
Chapter Nine U. S. Department of Defense Preparations
Chapter Ten Retaliation – Cyber Counter-Terrorism
PART FIVE Cyber Attacks as Acts Of War
Chapter Eleven Does Cyber Vandalism fall short of An Act of War?
Chapter Twelve When is it an act of war? What is an appropriate response?
Chapter Thirteen If the U.S. Government doesn’t respond, might the company?
PART SIX Is a Cyber War a Realistic Threat?
Chapter Fourteen The Threat is Real
Chapter Fifteen What could cause a Cyber War—World War C?
Chapter Sixteen A Major Attack on America’s Critical Infrastructure
Chapter Seventeen Based upon what we know, could hackers bring down the U.S. Power Grid?
PART SEVEN Preparing For Cyber Warfare
Chapter Eighteen Cyber War Implications for Business
Chapter Nineteen It’s Time to Get Ready for the Coming Cyber War
Chapter Twenty We Are All Preppers Now
APPENDIX A
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
APPENDIX B
Dedications
To the love of my life, you saved me from madness and continue to do so daily.
To the Princesses of the Palace, my little marauders in training, you have no idea how much happiness you bring to your Mommy and me.
To my fellow preppers; never be ashamed of adopting a preparedness lifestyle.
Acknowledgements
For their efforts in making The Boston Brahmin series a reality, I would like to thank Hristo Argirov Kovatliev for his incredible cover art, Pauline Nolet for her editorial prowess, Stef Mcdaid for making this manuscript readable on so many formats, and The Team—whose advice, friendship and attention to detail is priceless.
Thank you!
About the Author
Author of two Amazon #1 Bestsellers for both fiction (Evil, Meet Opportunity—Action, Adventure category) and nonfiction (Seeds of Liberty—Politics, Social Sciences and Modern History genres), Bobby Akart has provided his readers a diverse range of topics that are both informative and entertaining.
Born and raised in Tennessee, Bobby received his bachelor’s degree with a dual major in Economics and Political Science. He not only understands how the economy works, but the profound effect politics has on the economy as well. After completing his undergraduate degree at Tennessee in three years, he entered the dual-degree program, obtaining a Juris Doctor combined with an MBA—Master of Business Administration at the age of twenty-three.
His education perfectly suited him for his legal career in banking, trusts, and investment banking. As his legal career flourished, business opportunities arose, including the operation of restaurants and the development of commercial real estate. But after meeting and marrying the love of his life, they left the corporate world and developed online businesses.
A life-changing event led them to Muddy Pond, Tennessee where he and his wife lead a self-sustainable, preparedness lifestyle. Bobby and his wife are unabashed preppers and share their expert knowledge of prepping via their website www.FreedomPreppers.com.
Bobby lives in the back woods of the Cumberland Plateau with his wife and fellow author, Danni Elle, their two English bulldogs, aka the Princesses of the Palace, a variety of farm animals, thirteen Pekin ducks and a herd of a dozen bunnies, and counting.
You can contact Bobby directly by email ([email protected]) or through his website www.BobbyAkart.com
Foreword by Author Steven Konkoly
Where to start? Bobby Akart has been a tireless proponent of prepper fiction writers, going far above and beyond the call of duty to support and promote authors. From the very first time I spoke with Bobby, I was impressed with his positive attitude and willingness to share. It’s the kind of selflessness that makes you wonder what’s the catch? Well, there is no catch! Bobby is just a stand-up guy—with many talents.
I was familiar with Bobby’s writing via the American Preppers Network and his website—FreedomPreppers.com. I wanted to get Bobby out of the shadows and into the limelight, so I suggested Bobby try writing fiction. His addition to my Perseid Collapse Kindle World reached an Amazon #1 Bestseller ranking in the Kindle Worlds Action and Adventure category. From that point forward, Bobby was hooked, and a new author was born.
In addition to the very successful Boston Brahmin series, Bobby wrote a nonfiction companion guide to the series—Seeds of Liberty. Also, an Amazon #1 Bestseller in the Politics, Social Sciences, and History categories, Seeds of Liberty exhibits Bobby’s versatility in writing both fiction and nonfiction works.
In The Boston Brahmin series, political suspense collides with post-apocalyptic thriller fiction. Bobby’s attention to detail and real-world scenarios immerses the reader in a world of geopolitical machinations and post-apocalyptic drama.
The Prepping for Tomorrow series is the culmination of Bobby’s research and real-world experiences provided in a concise guide for new and experienced preppers alike. Author Bobby Akart possesses the analytic capability of a supercomputer coupled with the expressiveness of an exceptional writer. Cyber Warfare is eye-opening.
About Cyber Warfare and the Prepping for Tomorrow Series
Because you never know when the day before —
is the day before.
Prepare for tomorrow!
What if the preppers are right?
The media shapes public opinion in all formats including news, cinema and television shows. It should come as no surprise that everyone doesn't necessarily form an opinion on every subject. Nor should you be shocked to hear that most opinions are uninformed. We can all give countless examples of this. Most Americans are sheeple, unable to think for themselves. They are content to follow, and many are too lazy to do the minimal research required to have an informed opinion. Their reliance on government or media sources for information makes them susceptible to manipulation. It's simply easier to be a sheeple.
As a student of the preparedness lifestyle, I cringe at the media's portrayal of preppers. Initially, the brunt of the ridicule was directed at survivalists.
But with the success of National Geographic's Doomsday Preppers, the concept of being a prepper hit the mainstream. Now Preppers are the target of the media's derision. I have my opinion as to why that is the case, and it has its basis in politics. It is my opinion that the media is largely left-leaning and, as a result, does not embrace the self-sufficient lifestyle that is prepping. So, if you can't join them, beat them down—repeatedly. As a recent example, consider the media's dismantling of the Tea Party movement. I see similar attacks on preppers.
From the Associated Press: "Sandy Hook Shooter Comes from Prepper Family."
From CBS: "Local 'Preppers' Stock Up For Improbable US Ebola Crisis."
From Washington Post: "'Preppers' Convinced Yellowstone Volcano Spells Doom."
But, what if the Preppers are right?
What if?
The Economy Collapses
The United States economy can collapse as a result of our own government's mismanagement of our national debt or external factors such as a global financial meltdown, an attack on the US Dollar, and other predictable events. Why do you think the Federal Reserve is so frightened of raising interest rates despite apparent underlying inflation data? Our economy is a house of cards. We are just a few steps away from a collapse of the dollar and hyperinflation.
History is replete with the rise and fall of empires. Are Americans so arrogant, or oblivious, to realize that we are in a stage of decline and collapse? Some of the signs of decline include a downward cultural spiral, an over-reliance on government and the inability to protect the integrity of a nation's borders. Sound familiar?
All empires collapse eventually. There have been no exceptions in the history of humanity.
None. All empires end when a more vigorous empire defeats them—or when their financing runs out.
What if?
Escalation of Global Conflict into a World War
Let's compile a list of the strongest, most dangerous bad actors on the world geopolitical stage:
Russia ~ China ~ North Korea ~ Iran ~ Syria ~ ISIS ~ Al Qaeda
What do these seven geopolitical foes have in common? They both hate and disrespect the United States! Think of the Seven Deadly Sins: Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, Pride. All of these relate to the attitudes of these bad actors towards the United States. Is it that far fetched that one or more of these could band together to bring the mighty United States of America to it's knees? Remember the words of the great Chinese General Sun Tzu — the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Except ISIS and Al Qaeda, the five nations comprising this group considers each other allies.
The assassination of an Archduke precipitated World War I, but the underlying causes were geopolitical tensions in Europe. 20 million people died during the war followed by another 70 million post-war due to famine and the Spanish Flu. Are we naive to think that something like this couldn't happen again? Geopolitical tensions - sound familiar?
Tensions arising from invasions of other sovereign territories around the world was the principal cause of World War II. It escalated into a global conflict with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Today, Russia has invaded Ukraine. China prepares to exert more of its dominance in Asia. ISIS is taking over large parts of the Middle East to form an Islamic State. Some might say— not our problem. But what if one of the bad actors mentioned above decide to make it our problem with an attack on the heartland along the lines of Pearl Harbor? Is that so far fetched? Remember 9/11?
What if?
America is Attacked
We are vulnerable to attack because of our desire to provide freedoms to all Americans, but especially because of political correctness. We are not allowed to use racial profiling to identify a potential terrorist. Our southern border is a sieve. We refuse to ban flights from Ebola-stricken countries for fear of being labeled racist. Our military has been weakened by prolonged wars and budget cuts.
Our enemies can come at us in so many ways. A day does not go by without news of a cyber-terrorism incident. What if these cyber attacks are just a series of trial runs before one large massive, coordinated attack on our banking, governmental and utility servers? An electromagnetic pulse delivered by a nuclear warhead or a series of electromagnetic pulse weapons fired at strategic locations across the country could bring down our power grid. For the first time, Russia has more deployed nuclear assets than the United States does. Can you say "outnumbered"?
What if?
Widespread Pandemic or BioTerror
Our government is intent on calming the fears of the American people as to the likelihood of the Ebola virus hitting US soil. The presence of the Ebola virus came as a result of bringing Ebola-stricken health care workers into the country. Keep in mind that these were people who are experts in treating this virus and who were provided all of the necessary equipment to prevent contracting Ebola. As the CDC was calming our fears, a Nigerian national flew into Dallas with Ebola potentially infecting hundreds and ultimately dying while in the government's care.
The question has to be asked—What is wrong with a little fear amongst the masses?
Fear is a great motivator; it is designed to be compelling so that we take survival action in the form of fight, flight, or freeze.
In 1763, the British fortress at Fort Pitt in Delaware was under siege. Letters were exchanged between British General Jeffrey Amherst and Colonel Henry Bouquet as to proposed defensive tactics.
General Amherst suggested: "Could it not be contrived to send the Smallpox among those disaffected tribes of Indians?"
Weaponized smallpox. Is it not plausible that our enemies could weaponize Ebola? In the name of Jihad, is it not possible that one would contract the Ebola virus and enter the United States with the intention of creating a pandemic? The news outlets that raise these possibilities are labeled fear mongers and racists. But have you noticed that Amazon is selling out of particulate masks and other bio-hazard supplies? Fear is a great motivator.
What if?
Near Earth Object - SuperVolcano Eruption - Natural Disaster
Any of the above naturally occurring events could wreak havoc on our power grid, our atmosphere, and our climate. These are not the catastrophic events known only in science fiction movies. There is a historical precedent for them all.
A major earthquake along the New Madrid Fault in the central United States could collapse bridges over the Mississippi River. An earthquake of this magnitude along the New Madrid happened before in 1811 and 1812. The New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ) is comprised of eight states: Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.
The Wabash Valley Seismic Zone (WVSZ) in southern Illinois and southeast Indiana together with the East Tennessee Seismic Zone in eastern Tennessee and northeastern Alabama, constitute a significant risk of moderate-to-severe earthquakes throughout the central region of the USA.
Studies indicate the Tennessee will incur the highest level of economic damage and societal impact. According to the Mid-America Earthquake Center, over 300,000 buildings would be moderately or more severely damaged, over 290,000 people will be displaced and well over 70,000 casualties are expected. Total direct economic losses surpass $56 billion. These results focus on the immediate effects of the massive earthquake itself. As preppers, we consider the ancillary impact in the form of societal unrest — looting, death from sickness and murder.
The States of Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky and Illinois would also incur significant losses. Studies indicate a potential direct economic loss reaching over $150 billion.
The indirect economic loss due to business interruption and loss of market share is at least as high if not far greater than the direct economic losses. Scientists and economists predict the total economic impact of a series of NMSZ earthquakes is likely to constitute the highest economic loss due to a natural disaster in U.S. history.
The economic losses and societal impact for each state should be considered separately. Since each scenario is based on a
different hazard, adding results together will not reflect an accurate scenario. It 's hard to gauge the potential loss of life resulting from a natural disaster of this magnitude.
Critical infrastructure and lifelines will also be heavily damaged and will be out of service after the earthquake for a considerable period. The resulting collapse of the power grid and transportation routes are likely to affect a region much larger than the eight states referenced above. Many hospitals nearest to the epicenter will not be able to care for its patients. Many of those injured during the disaster will have to be transported outside of the region for medical attention. Moreover, pre-disaster patients will be required to continue their care outside of the area to fully functioning hospitals.
It is doubtful that the transportation system will be intact. Damage to the transportation system will hinder mass evacuation efforts. First responders will be severely impaired due to police and fire stations throughout the impacted region. Public shelters will be damaged and unusable after the earthquake.
The scenario described for a New Madrid Zone earthquake can be applied to other catastrophic disaster events. Strikes by near earth objects such as asteroids can be extinction level events. Likewise, a massive eruption of the Yellowstone Super Volcano could result in climate change that would alter the entire food production system of the Northern Hemisphere.
What if?
Coronal Mass Ejection – Solar Flare
Imagine our way of life without power for weeks on end as a result of a massive solar flare striking the Earth. It happened in 1859 in what is commonly referred to as the Carrington Event.
For telegraph operators in the Americas and Europe, however, the experience caused chaos. Many found that their lines were just unusable—they could neither send nor receive messages. Others were able to operate even with their power supplies turned off, using only the current in the air from the solar storm.
