"L'Express" Article Asserts US Hacked Sarkozy Office Computer

Former French President
Nicolas Sarkozy
(photo: Wikipedia)

Not so long ago, Nicolas Sarkozy was France's elected leader. Many countries had considerable interest in obtaining "early information" on what the French president was planning. Among those nations was the United States. It's a natural impulse among countries to want to gain this type of material. Prior to the electronic world's ascension, information was obtained from human beings. The 21st Century has changed that perspective; the current trend is information acquisition from various forms of gadgetry.

Today's online edition of the BBC summarized a story from the French magazine L'Express which asserts America hacked into computers inside former president Sarkozy's office. The cyber attack, according to the L'Express piece, featured a "'powerful worm'" that went undetected for more time than the leader of any powerful nation would feel comfortable with.

The emergence of sophisticated cyber attacks penetrating seemingly secure venues, such as France's Elysee Palace, is a grave matter. Most facilities essential to a society's smooth functioning rely on uncompromised computer programs and a secure, steady supply of electricity. Nations now possess the means to disrupt the operation of water supply systems, power grids, telecommunications. These forms of attack are much more insidious than the more coarse instruments of conflict, such as bombs. It's not exactly news that China, Russia, the United States, Israel, Britain, Iran, and (yes) France possess the know-how and the will to engage in cyber warfare tactics. I wonder if any of these countries command the parallel skill of knowing how and when to wisely use them.