Ransomware Is Tip Of The Iceberg: America's Infrastructure At Risk

The Ransomware that began spreading across the globe on Friday is still going with more computers reportedly being affected today by new variants of the virus.

What we've learned is that the attack hasn't just taken down personal computers, but core government and business networks affecting everything from health care systems and transportation in Europe, to ATM withdrawals in China.

It's massive, to be sure. But in the grand scheme of things, up to this point, it has been a fairly minor inconvenience.

But as Joe Joseph warns in his latest news report at The Daily Sheeple, this is just the tip of the iceberg, because now that we've seen how quickly such an attack can spread, it's only a matter of time before rogue groups or state-sponsored players make a direct attempt at taking down core systems that keep millions of people in America alive. 

As we've previously noted, U.S. cyber command has warned that power grids, physical infrastructure and commerce systems will be a major target of future cyber attacks, and the latest Ransomware attack utilizing NSA-created exploits proves just how serious the damage could be:

Experts are saying this is just the tip of the iceberg... what the NSA has done and the damage they have caused as the result of coming up with these exploits in the first place is criminal... but it's beyond criminal... in our society we have become so dependent on technology.. our computers... our cell phone...

We've become so hooked on it that if something happens and it looks like it can very easily happen... where some of these hacks are exploited... we could see an instantaneous change in the way that we live... to the point where you could see upwards of 80% or 90% of the population just in the United States dying as a result of a prolonged power outage because the grid gets hacked...

Joseph's figure of a 90% die off in the event of a grid failure is based on the work of EMP researcher Dr. Peter Pry, who recently testified before a Congressional panel on the dangers of "grid down" scenarios resulting from electro-magnetic pulse attack. 

Though Pry's research is primarily based on the threat of a nuclear device being detonated a couple hundred miles above the central United States taking out the entirety of the domestic power grid, the end result of a grid-down scenario, whether initiated by a cyber attack or something else, is very much the same.

Without the grid, all life in America would come to a standstill. Gas station pumps wouldn't work, which means trucks couldn't deliver food to grocery stores. And even if your local store still had food on the shelves, cash registers and bank payment verification systems would be unavailable, making hard currency like gold and silver the only means of transacting. 

As we've seen in China over the weekend, ATM's would likely be inaccessible. So, too, would be your access to clean water, as most utility plants are tied to the power grid.

In short, within about 72 hours, there would be pandemonium in the streets, as highlighted by The Prepper's Blueprint author Tess Pennington in her article The Anatomy of a Breakdown:

3-5 days following a disaster is the bewitching hour. During this short amount of time, the population slowly becomes a powder keg full of angry, desperate citizens. 

A good example is the chaos that ensued in New Orleans following the absence of action from the local government or a timely effective federal response in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. 

In such troubled times, people were forced to fend for themselves and their families, by any means necessary. This timeline of Hurricane Katrina effectively illustrates "the breakdown," and within three days, the citizens of New Orleans descended into anarchy, looting and murder.

If the crisis extends for any more than about a week, you can expect full-out war on the streets of America as people race to acquire the last remaining resources.

Within one year, predicts Peter Pry, nine out of ten Americans would be dead because of starvation or violence.

It may sound incredible, but if you consider the reality of our dependence on technology, a multi-week or multi-month hiccup in the system will be enough to bring the entire thing crashing down.

Even the Department of Homeland Security recently warned about the potential for devastating cyber attacks, going so far as to recommend that families need to prepare at least two weeks of food and emergency supplies because the federal government may be overwhelmed and unable to provide assistance.

Originally published at SHTFplan.com - reposted with permission.