Cyberspace: A Matter of National Security - Sponsored by Trustwave

Cyberspace began as the domain of technologists and engineers, with a focus on building circuits, switches, computers, and software that could reliably sustain a new global form of communication. In the past decade, cyberspace has taken on a new meaning, one that is more focused on the "content" rather than the "conduit" through which humans connect their thoughts and ideas. Even the nature of online attacks has shifted to this new model, evolving in sync with the changing face of cyberspace. In the 1990s, most attacks were aimed at the infrastructure, resulting in denials of service, website defacements, or prankish stunts such as rapidly spreading worms that were more of a nuisance than a threat to our nation's critical infrastructure. In the 21st century, threats are becoming more focused on the value of online information—not just credit cards and PayPal accounts, but items like sensitive government documents and industry trade secrets. Our adversaries are discovering new ways either to steal or create value by direct manipulation of the content, rather than the conduit, of cyberspace.

This keynote address will examine these trends and their impact on national security in greater detail and discuss the federal government's response to the changes in cyberthreats, as well as look at how groups beyond the government such as the SANS Internet Storm Center are adapting to these changes. Finally, the speaker will discuss a few technical approaches to bringing safety and security back to cyberspace, with a special focus on new security tools for the Domain Name System and what we need to think about in terms of security "in the cloud" as we move to cloud computing.