Under attack.

There is a new war and its - on line. Over the last few years there has been a very large increase in - cyber warfare, according to many in the international security business, including GCHQ and the NSA - National Security Agency in the US. In 2010 there was a new department formed at the NSA entitled - Cyber Command. The problem of cyber attack first came to light in 2007 when the whole of the communication infrastructure of Estonia was brought down. Many suspected the perpetrators were the Russians. For those unfamiliar with this world this may all sound a little far fetched, and a bit out of Hollywood. A very good programme on Radio 4 on Sunday sort to throw light on this dark trade. Introduced by the BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera Under Attack: The Threat from Cyber Space described how this new threat is being seen and dealt with. Iran has been at the forefront of many attacks, but they retort its only in response to what the NSA is doing. However the biggest threat is thought to be coming from China. The war in cyber space is definitely hotting up. It puts into context the recent reaction of the US government to Edward Snowden the NSA whistleblower.