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Americans More Worried About Cybersecurity Than Terrorism

Posted by Soulskill on from the that-there-internet-is-a-scary-thing dept.

TheGift73 tips an article discussing a new study (PDF) which found Americans are now more worried about cybersecurity threats than they are about terrorism. Here's Techdirt's acerbic take: "Well, it looks like all the fearmongering about hackers shutting down electrical grids and making planes fall from the sky is working. No matter that there's no evidence of any actual risk, or that the only real issue is if anyone is stupid enough to actually connect such critical infrastructure to the internet (the proper response to which is: take it off the internet), fear is spreading. Of course, this is mostly due to the work of a neat combination of ex-politicians/now lobbyists working for defense contractors who stand to make a ton of money from the panic — enabled by politicians who seem to have no shame in telling scary bedtime stories that have no basis in reality."

4 of 266 comments (clear)

  1. fearmongering by nurb432 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Has always been an effective tactic for manipulating public opinion.

    He who controls the media, controls the future.

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
    1. Re:fearmongering by girlintraining · · Score: 5, Interesting

      He who controls the media, controls the future.

      Not really effective unless the population is uneducated. Considering the price of education has risen, er, 270% in the last 15 years... it would seem to indicate a concerted effort to turn an informed citizenship into mindless zombies, which has traditionally been the precursor to the fall of democratic government. I've found in the past 2 years or so people believing all kinds of non-sense that simply wouldn't have been tolerated before then. The anti-vaxxers, the global warming 'skeptics', creationism being taught in schools, homeopathic remedies... and the other day I had someone yelling at me because they thought that hair had nerves in it. It's become politically vogue to be a blithering moron.

      --
      #fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
    2. Re:fearmongering by thomsonjones · · Score: 5, Informative

      So why do we teach evolution as the only answer?

      Because evolution has actual evidence. And probably for the same reason we don't teach people about invisible magical pink unicorns living on mars in schools.

    3. Re:fearmongering by Jeremiah+Cornelius · · Score: 5, Funny

      SHUT DOWN THE NET! FOR NATIONAL SECURITY!

      The psyop seems to be working - but tell that to MLB. They post their WEP passphrase on national TV!

      --
      "Flyin' in just a sweet place,
      Never been known to fail..."