U.s Proposes Hike In Cybersecurity Spending

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The President of the United States (U.S) has proposed a two percent increase in budgetary allocation for the Justice Department. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the nation's premier counter crime agency is part of the Justice Department. One of the aims of the proposed hike in spending is to facilitate expansion of cyber security operations of the FBI. The proposed hike requires FBI to recruit 42 security specialists to investigate computer intrusions initiated by cyber terrorists and rival countries. In the recent years, cyber security has emerged as a major challenge for the country.

The country has faced numerous attacks on computer systems and networks associated with government and military departments. The attacks pose threat to crucial infrastructural facilities, scientific institutions and business organizations. The Department of Defense has suffered several intrusion attempts. Security experts have constantly alerted on the implications of attacks on key industrial facilities such as power and nuclear grids. The threats in the cyber space are vibrant and the countries face threat of attacks from cybercriminals, ...
... hacktivists, terrorist organizations, corporate spies and rival intelligence agencies.

The recent WikiLeaks disclosure of classified documents and diplomatic cables of the U.S State department highlights the enormity of the threat. Cybercriminals are making use of sophisticated mechanisms to intrude into computer systems and networks. The motive behind computer and network intrusions may be diverse such as data theft, cyber espionage, remote access and control and disruption of operations. The number of cybercrime cases is constantly on the rise. Therefore, counter crime agencies such as FBI need to be well-equipped to deal with cyber challenge. Offenders may launch attacks from any part of the world with Internet connection. Availability of legally admissible evidence is crucial to prosecute cyber criminals. Hiring computer security experts is crucial to trace the perpetrators of crime and bring them to justice. In addition, counter crime agencies must organize computer security awareness training programs to facilitate better handling of Internet crime cases by investigators.

The fight against online threats also requires security awareness among Internet users. Government bodies, regulatory agencies and counter crime agencies may collaborate to organize cyber security workshops, develop elearning programs and circulate cyber security video clips.

Several reports in the past have indicated shortage of cyber security specialists such as computer programmers, system administrator, network administrators, computer forensic experts and security auditors among others in U.S. Inclusion of cyber security introduction at an early level in the school curriculum may allow students to get acquainted with the subject and allow them to groom their IT skills over a period of time.