Return-Path: <sentto-279987-2907-1003011438-fc=all.net@returns.onelist.com> Delivered-To: fc@all.net Received: from 204.181.12.215 by localhost with POP3 (fetchmail-5.1.0) for fc@localhost (single-drop); Sat, 13 Oct 2001 15:18:07 -0700 (PDT) Received: (qmail 13416 invoked by uid 510); 13 Oct 2001 22:17:04 -0000 Received: from n7.groups.yahoo.com (216.115.96.57) by 204.181.12.215 with SMTP; 13 Oct 2001 22:17:04 -0000 X-eGroups-Return: sentto-279987-2907-1003011438-fc=all.net@returns.onelist.com Received: from [10.1.1.221] by n7.groups.yahoo.com with NNFMP; 13 Oct 2001 22:17:18 -0000 X-Sender: fc@big.all.net X-Apparently-To: iwar@yahoogroups.com Received: (EGP: mail-7_4_1); 13 Oct 2001 22:17:17 -0000 Received: (qmail 35338 invoked from network); 13 Oct 2001 22:17:17 -0000 Received: from unknown (10.1.10.26) by 10.1.1.221 with QMQP; 13 Oct 2001 22:17:17 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO big.all.net) (65.0.156.78) by mta1 with SMTP; 13 Oct 2001 22:17:17 -0000 Received: (from fc@localhost) by big.all.net (8.9.3/8.7.3) id PAA07690 for iwar@yahoogroups.com; Sat, 13 Oct 2001 15:17:16 -0700 Message-Id: <200110132217.PAA07690@big.all.net> To: iwar@yahoogroups.com In-Reply-To: <OCEDLLJFJEMAFJGHDCLNEEHKCMAA.cpreston@gci.net> from "Charles Preston" at Oct 13, 2001 12:44:46 PM Organization: I'm not allowed to say X-Mailer: don't even ask X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.5 PL1] From: Fred Cohen <fc@all.net> Mailing-List: list iwar@yahoogroups.com; contact iwar-owner@yahoogroups.com Delivered-To: mailing list iwar@yahoogroups.com Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:iwar-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com> Date: Sat, 13 Oct 2001 15:17:16 -0700 (PDT) Reply-To: iwar@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [iwar] EMP and other questions Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Per the message sent by Charles Preston: > With respect to suitcase nuclear weapons of about 1 kiloton yield, what are > the prospects for EMP to destroy a large computer or communications center > within a few miles (further than blast range)? Would height be a factor > (guarding structures of 10 stories or more)? A typical nuclear weapon will be pretty devastating for a radius of at least 25-50 miles from the blast point - if detonated appropriately. 1Kton is pretty small, however, if you look at the computation I put on the iwar forum comparing an atomic blast to a 747 full of fuel exploding, you will be abelt to get a sense of it. > Are the nuclear weapons much more detectable than another design (explosive > microwave generator EMP weapon, for example)? Are gamma ray emitters > detectable from orbit? There are a variety of detection methods which can sense different radiation patterns from different places... are you talking about before or after detonation? > Is it feasible for someone to consider simultaneous destruction of MAE East, > MAE West and other centers along with a few satellite ground links? This would not be as bad as you might think, however, it would be pretty bad. In answer to your quesiton, yes it has been considered and this particular scenario is certainly feasible, but it is somewhat more complex than you might imagine - both to do and to defend against. In the end, if you have real serious nuclear weapons capability with delivery mechanisms, the options probably reduce to pre-emptive strike and negotiation. In the case of the folks now under consideration, I would wildly guess that George would choose the former. > Is it > less difficult to accomplish this with a combination of insider sabotage and > software? Some of the characteristics of the past few years' major attacks > are low cost, cost efficiency, and technological simplicity. Does that > imply that an attack on communications centers is less likely than other > targets? Targetting in this case likely depends greatly on attacker objectives. IF you only think about targets you will quickly determine that everything is a potential terrorist target. Then you are back where you started. FC --This communication is confidential to the parties it is intended to serve-- Fred Cohen Fred Cohen & Associates.........tel/fax:925-454-0171 fc@all.net The University of New Haven.....http://www.unhca.com/ http://all.net/ Sandia National Laboratories....tel:925-294-2087 ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Pinpoint the right security solution for your company- Learn how to add 128- bit encryption and to authenticate your web site with VeriSign's FREE guide! http://us.click.yahoo.com/yQix2C/33_CAA/yigFAA/kgFolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> ------------------ http://all.net/ Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : 2001-12-31 20:59:55 PST