Cybercrime Is A Plague That Is Not Likely To Be Eradicated Anytime Soon

The head of the National Security Administration (NSA) and U.S. Cyber Command Admiral Michael Rogers spoke at a conference hosted by the Wall Street Journal this week were he urged business leaders to work with the government in fighting the “scourge of cybercrime.”

He further went on to say that the number of hackers out there is “so large and diverse” that it is difficult for the government to identify the perpetrators.

Adm. Rogers also said that roughly two-thirds of hackers are criminals looking to make money by stealing (consumer) information from private databases, and the remaining third are state-sponsored hackers seeking to steal business and government secrets for a variety of illicit purposes.

Clearly, the NSA  now believe that open cooperation between the business community and the government is essential in order to combat cybercrime.

But while reaching out to the business community in the spirit of cooperation makes sense,  the reality is, that very few companies (and especially those in the consumer data and tech industry) are likely to openly partner with the NSA for fear of raising concerns over the safety and integrity of their products and services in the minds of the general public, both at home and abroad.

In fact, based on our research both large and small businesses that have been the subject of cyber attacks in the past are more reluctant to report identified hacks and data breaches to the government in the future, let alone work with them on countermeasures.

Clearly, cybercrime is a plague that is not likely to be eradicated anytime soon.

Stay safe!