http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=22604 By Doug Mohney 18 April 2005 AS IRAQI insurgents continue to battle against the existing Iraqi government and allied forces, the Internet is playing a key role in their efforts to coordinate attacks and publicise them after the fact, according to multiple newspaper and media accounts. Who would have thought that we would see the "Jihadist Information Brigade" appear or Abu Musab al-Zarqawi start publishing his own Internet webzine? Zurwat Al Sanam . translated, it means "The Tip of the Camel Hump" . allegedly started publishing in March, but trying to find a URL to the publication in English through Google is about as easy as trying to find Mr. Zarqawi himself. Ironically, this grass-roots, er, sandlot use of the Internet runs counter to the loud ideas espoused by cyberwarfare geeks and info-sec experts that evil doers would use their much superior knowledge of the Internet to bring down banking systems, power plants, and Civilisation As We Know it, inflicting billions of dollars of damage onto world economies. Turns out that the evil doers need the Internet now more than ever to communicate, organise and propagandise the masses. However, this isn't a one-sided battle, by any stretch of the imagination. While Al Qaeda and its international band of affiliates post their latest beheading videos and exchange the latest bomb tips via peer-to-peer networking, various governmental agencies are conducting their own operations. Exactly what is going on in this electronic version of Spy-vs-Spy isn't clear, but we can wager some very good guesses. First, intelligence agencies, and of course, the public media, are actively "tuned in" to various terrorist "Network 21" websites and go through every freshly posted web page with a fine-tooth comb, examining everything from a newly posted JPEG graphic for hidden messages to downloading audio and video clips and running them against archival databases to identify speakers voices and sifting for clues on locations from background noises and images. Each web page is catalogued and compared to previous ones, in an attempt to discern patterns and electronic "fingerprints" of compositional style and software. While government agencies may loathe the content of these missives, they love each and every posting opportunity that jihadist webmasters make. Every piece of data presents an opportunity to learn more about the individual(s) and build a profile. Efforts are also made to track down the physical location where postings are made from to web servers and chat rooms, but this is a little trickier given the proliferation of anonymous posting techniques and the explosive growth of cybercafés across Iraq. It's likely there's a combination of American technology and expertise working with Iraqi government security forces to put eyes on any potential "points of posting," with a quick raid to grab people and computers if a successful lead develops. It is also likely that US information warfare specialists are very carefully and selectively examining and, when possible, even manipulating posted data. Nothing better than to change a couple of key steps in the on-line bomb making manual or to suggest "improvements" in bomb-making techniques that result in devices that are more easily discovered or go off prematurely. A few successful "plants" of that nature and suddenly the practices of Information Assurance are more than abstract theory taught at West Point. _________________________________________ Network Security - http://www.auditmypc.com Free vulnerability test - How secure is your computer?
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