| As I wrote in my second edition preface, since the publication of the second edition in 2003, there have been tremendous changes in the fields of computer science and information sciences. During this period, we have become more dependent on computer and telecommunication technology than ever before. As we, individually and as nations, become more dependent on cyberspace technology, it has itself, in turn, become a critical component of individual nations’ security infrastructures that control power grids, gas and oil storage facilities, transportation and all forms of national communication, including emergency services. This intertwining of security components with cyberspace has elevated it to an important security component for not only individuals but nations as well.
The recent rise in cyberattacks, many of them with lightening speed, affecting millions of computers worldwide and in the process causing billions of dollars in losses to individuals and businesses, is an indication of how unprepared we are to handle such attacks not only now but also in the future. It is also a mark of the poor state of our cyberspace security policies, the cyberspace on which we have come to depend so much, and the vulnerability of us all. The fact that there are no signs yet to indicate that there is going to be a slow down in such attacks, and that nations are doing anything worth calling preventive has heightened the need for an effective strategy to produce responsible professionals who can play an active role in the fight against computer and cyber attacks and vandalism. |