Think all these news stories you are reading about cybersecurity, cyberwar, and cyberconflict are breaking new ground?

It is worth taking a read through the several hundred entries meticulously compiled in Mich Kabay’s 1999 Infosec Year in Review which I recently found on an old drive while searching for other content.

Some old new topics covered in 1999 include:

• Data leakage through websites.
• The “first” Cyberwar in Serbia
• Supply chain/ code distro attacks
• Propagating malware/viruses
• Destructive malware/virus attacks
• Social engineering attacks
• Disruption of business due to attacks
• Stock pump and dumps via fake news web sites
• Attempts to sell human organs online
• Attempts to sell illegal drugs online
• Furbies a risk to the NSA!
• New DOD strategies on cyber conflict
• Creation of the Joint Task Force for Computer Network Defense
• Hackers taking control of satellites and extorting the owners (or maybe not)
• Hacktivist attacks
• Chinese Information Warfare Doctrine
• Hackers discuss how easy it would be to take down the power grid
• Eric Schmidt (of Google fame) was personally hacked!
• Russia using criminal hackers to target the U.S. government
• Black Hat and Def Con conference coverage
• Hate groups using the Internet for propaganda and recruiting
• Israel forms a cyberwar unit (8200?)
• Computer security staffing shortages
• Someone forgot to use BCC
• Security risks of imbedded medical devices
• Chinese internet censorship
• Crypto attacks

Infosec Year in Review 1999 (PDF)

About the Author

Matt Devost

Matthew G. Devost is the CEO & Co-Founder of OODA LLC. Matt is a technologist, entrepreneur, and international security expert specializing in counterterrorism, critical infrastructure protection, intelligence, risk management and cyber-security issues. Matt co-founded the cyber security consultancy FusionX from 2010-2017. Matt was President & CEO of the Terrorism Research Center/Total Intel from 1996-2009. For a full bio, please see www.devost.net