RAND_MR1382

Table 2.1
Sample of Web Sites Belonging to Militant Islamist Groups
Disruptive Attacks
Netwar-oriented terrorists can also use IT to launch disruptive attacks—that is,
electronic strikes that temporarily disable, but do not destroy, physical and/or virtual
infrastructure. If the ultimate goal of a terrorist is to influence his opponent’s will to
fight, IO offer additional means to exert influence beyond using simple physical attacks
to cause terror. Disruptive attacks include “choking” computer systems through such
tools as e-bombs, fax spamming, and hacking techniques to deface web sites. These
strikes are usually nonlethal in nature, although they can wreak havoc and cause
significant economic damage.
To date, disruptive strikes by terrorists have been relatively few and fairly
unsophisticated—but they do seem to be increasing in frequency. For example, in 1996,
the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) launched an email bomb attack against Sri
Lankan diplomatic missions. Using automated tools, the guerilla organization flooded
Sri Lankan embassies with thousands of messages, thus establishing a “virtual
blockade.” 22 Japanese groups have allegedly attacked the computerized control systems
for commuter trains, paralyzing major cities for hours (Devost, Houghton, and Pollard,
1997, p. 67). In 2000, a group of Pakistani hackers who call themselves the Muslim
Online Syndicate (MOS) defaced more than 500 web sites in India to protest the conflict
in Kashmir (see Hopper, 2000). Finally, Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Taiba claimed to have
attacked Indian military web sites in early 2000. 23
Disruptive rather than destructive actions take place for several reasons. For example,