Terrorist and the Internet

One way that terrorist may use the Internet is by using websites like Google Earth to get overhead images and street level views to use in evaluating potential targets and approach and egress routes and alternates, if you have a military base or power plant close to where you live, search Goggle Earth for a great overhead view. you can use Goggle Maps and put in your current home address for a "Birds Eye View" and see how up to date the pictures are. Just think if you can use these web sites to help you plan a trip, then what could a terrorist cell do with them.

A second way is Malicious Code. Malicious code refers to viruses, worms, Trojan horses, logic bombs, and other "uninvited" software. Sometimes mistakenly associated only with personal computers, malicious code can attack other platforms. Once a computer is infected with malicious code, that computer maybe remotely controlled by a hacker who may, via the Internet send commands to spy on the contents of that computer or attack and disrupt other computers or steal consumer information from online business's and banks to raise funds for terrorist organizations. It has also been reported that some Al-Qaeda computers seized by armed forces in Afghanistan have contained information about ways to gain control of the computers with the use of malicious codes that run electrical, water, transportation, and communications systems. Many of these computer run systems are accessible over the Internet the security is lax. With access to such computers a terrorist could potentially shut down the electricity, disrupt phone lines of a city,or cause two trains to crash into each other.