While cyber protection is unquestionably provided for a state’s government, law enforcement agencies, and other important corporations, NGOs appear to have been largely left out of the equation. I would argue that these organizations are in dire need of online protection, not simply for the protection of the organizations themselves, but for the protection of those whom the organization works with and on behalf of. For example, a skilled attacker could easily obtain the information of an NGOs donors, volunteers, and clients, as well as information on their operations which could lead to potential physical harm to individuals. One need only think of human rights and humanitarian organizations, often operating in war-torn countries, to imagine which types of threats the release of said information could lead to.
Cyber attacks can also be used against NGOs to prevent sensitive information from being released that implicate a state/government/group/etc. in some atrocity. For example, in 2010, various NGOs in West Papua were victims of DDoS attacks on their websites after posting a video of Indonesian soldiers torturing West Papuans. It was suspected that the Indonesian authorities were the perpetrators of the attack, which left several websites inactive for some time. This is a prime example of an entity (ex. – Indonesian authorities) dishing out the funds and technology in order to act against another entity (ex. – NGO) who has little ability to prevent the action. In the case of NGOs, it is often the “bad guy” who has the ability to stamp out the “good guy”, and I think it should be the other way around. Ideally, it would be fantastic to have an organization that specialized in the cyber protection of NGOs websites and online information, providing them with the same or a higher level of cyber technology as those who might aim to suppress them. Of course, realistically implementing such an initiative, providing an expensive service to mostly non-profit, donations-based organizations, would be a feat that most would laugh at.
Perhaps someone should pitch the idea to Bill Gates.
Sources
- http://westpapuamedia.info/2010/11/05/indonesian-authorities-suspected-of-launching-cyber-attacks-on-ngo-websites/
- http://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/oct/28/survival-international-website-torture-video
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