In the article “Computer spyware is newest weapon in Syrian conflict” written by Ben Brumfield on February
17, 2012 discusses a very important issue. “In Syria's cyberwar, the regime's supporters
have deployed a new weapon against opposition activists -- computer viruses
that spy on them” according to an IT specialist, who had his computer infected
by the virus. The article continues to
state that unlike any other virus, most anti-virus software do not even notice
the virus. People in chat rooms convince
others to open up the two part link. An
IT specialist included that the second download to the link is the most complex,
since the virus was able to damage files, hack into accounts and share encrypted
information. When opened “No graphics
launched; no pop-up opened to announce to the user that the virus was being
downloaded. The link appeared to be dead or defected, said Othman” because the
warning sign to cancel the download would not pop up, most thought that the
download did not sync into your computer.
Syrian official immediately went into actions, by cracking down on known
hackers and going through their computers.
What Does This All Mean?
The information
stated in this article, obviously poses a huge threat to opposing countries for
many reason. Since Syrian hackers found
a way to share encrypted files with anyone by convincing someone in a chat room
to download a virus, I am pretty sure that anyone else can do the same. If one was to really think about it: How sure
can we be that other countries are not doing the same to the United States? Who no one all the files being shared around
the world? If at any point someone was
to hack into the United States database ad shut everything down. No one would really know what to do. Not everyone is trained to disable a virus,
and maybe that is a problem itself. I do
not think it would be a such if bad idea if there was a college course on how
to disable a virus or tips on email files that should not be opened. 
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