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McAfee Expands Cybercrime Initiative to Include Critical Infrastructure Protection
October 2009 by Emmanuelle Lamandé
McAfee, Inc. announced an expansion of the McAfee Initiative to Fight Cybercrime, extending the program to address critical infrastructure protection. In expanding the initiative, McAfee has developed a multi-point plan that focuses on several critical and available industries including the energy sector, telecommunications and transportation.
At the cornerstone of McAfee’s initiative to fight cybercrime, the company unveiled a multi-point plan to address key challenges in three critical infrastructure segments:
– Energy - Insiders have identified the energy sector as the biggest target for cybercrime (Energy Insights survey, 2008), with a third considering it to be the most vulnerable industry segment and even more (42%) indicating it could be the most detrimental if attacked.
– Telecommunications - End users can cause considerable damage to the network, or use the network to bring damage to other sectors.
– Transportation - In the Transportation sector, an attack has the potential to bring the United States economy to a halt (e.g. the inability to ship or import). The SoBig virus infected one of the key sector’s companies, shutting down signalling, dispatching and other systems.
McAfee’s multi-point plan aims to provide a framework that will focus on three core areas: 1) law and policy, 2) education and awareness and 3) research and innovation. McAfee will work to help both government and industry understand the value of public/private partnerships, providing technical, business process and policy advice to leaders in both the executive and legislative branches of government. The company will continue its work in education and awareness campaigns, working closely with leaders in the critical sectors.
