Pentagon hackers launch first offensive in cyberwar against Islamic State

US commanders have mounted a cyberoffensive against Islamic State in Syria for the first time by deploying military hackers against the extremist group’s computer and cellphone networks, according to the Pentagon.

The digital assault, launched in recent weeks from Fort Meade in Maryland, marked the first major integration of US Cyber Command into a major battlefield operation since the command was established in 2009.

More importantly, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter’s disclosure of a government-sanctioned cyberattack represents a shift in America’s war-fighting strategy and power projection. No other nation has publicly acknowledged launching cyberwar.

But in December, after deadly terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, frustrated officials in the White House pushed the Pentagon and intelligence agencies to crack down harder on Islamic State’s use of the digital realm to recruit and radicalise followers, handle logistics and communicate with commanders and fighting units. For the full article click here 

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