 Cyber War in the Middle East |
| Cyber War in the Middle East |
It seems clear that over the last 15 days very few obvious incidents have occurred in the once 'hot' cyber war between the Palestinians and Israeli supporters. It is less clear whether the cyber portion of the information war is winding down. The most common explanations for the apparent slowdown are as follows:
The participants are getting bored.
It is a holiday cease fire.
The was has become less 'obvious' but is still raging.
The parties are doing R&D to enhance capabilities.
The governments have reigned them in for now.
While all of these are possibilities, it appears that the last explanation is the most likely one for now. The cyberwar intensity followed closely with the intensity of the political and physical conflict. When the US elections came out very close, the media failed to present the PLO/Israeli conflict. As negotiations reopenned and Israeil started its political changes, the parties chose to reduce the intensity of the conflict just as they chose to intensify it in the run-up to the elections. Whether this was posturing for some negotation advantage or an attempt to influence the global political situation, it appears that the cyber conflict, as the physical conflict was indeed under political control.