The primary evolution of terrorist usage of technology

The primary evolution of terrorist usage of technology is in the cyber world. Cyber warfare and hacking attacks receive the largest amount of publicity but they are not the primary threat or even the primary usage of cyberspace by terrorist organizations. The primary threat is a combination of the online radicalization of a significant number of homegrown extremists combined with old fashioned, tried and tested terrorist procedures, like homemade explosives. To demonstrate the significance of online radicalization versus cyberwarfare, compare the 2021 hacking attack on the American gasoline delivery system with the Fort Hood attack by Major Hasan. The interruption of the American fuel system was a massive inconvenience for most Americans, it caused spikes in fuel costs across the county, and it caused interruptions in the basic logistical processes that Americans rely on for things such as food. With all the inconveniences caused by this cyber attack, I could not identify a single death that occurred due to the hack. Cyber attacks on higher echelon systems, such as DoD, the intelligence community, or DoS could lead to more dangerous outcomes, but as of today no terrorist organization has advanced to the point of a significant threat to these systems.The primary evolution of terrorist usage of technology is in the cyber world. Cyber warfare and hacking attacks receive the largest amount of publicity but they are not the primary threat or even the primary usage of cyberspace by terrorist organizations. The primary threat is a combination of the online radicalization of a significant number of homegrown extremists combined with old fashioned, tried and tested terrorist procedures, like homemade explosives. To demonstrate the significance of online radicalization versus cyberwarfare, compare the 2021 hacking attack on the American gasoline delivery system with the Fort Hood attack by Major Hasan. The interruption of the American fuel system was a massive inconvenience for most Americans, it caused spikes in fuel costs across the county, and it caused interruptions in the basic logistical processes that Americans rely on for things such as food. With all the inconveniences caused by this cyber attack, I could not identify a single death that occurred due to the hack. Cyber attacks on higher echelon systems, such as DoD, the intelligence community, or DoS could lead to more dangerous outcomes, but as of today no terrorist organization has advanced to the point of a significant threat to these systems.