In his welcoming remarks at Cyber Polygon 2020, WEF Founder Klaus Schwab warned about a coming “cyber pandemic” that would be worse than the current global crisis.
“We all know, but still pay insufficient attention to, the frightening scenario of a comprehensive cyber attack, which would bring a complete halt to the power supply, transportation, hospital services, our society as a whole,” he said.
“The COVID-19 crisis would be seen in this respect as a small disturbance in comparison to a major cyber attack.”
This year, Cyber Polygon 2021 will simulate a fictional cyber attack with participants from dozens of countries responding to “a targeted supply chain attack on a corporate ecosystem in real time.”
As the digital world encroaches on our physical and biological worlds, an effective cyber attack could compromise anything connected to the internet, including:
▪︎ Medical devices that keep people alive
▪︎ The Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem of connected devices that run smart homes (i.e. cameras, microphones, sensors, etc.)
▪︎ The Internet of Bodies (IoB) ecosystem of digitally-connected humans
▪︎ Global financial systems
▪︎ Energy grids
▪︎ Water treatment facilities
▪︎ Government IT systems
▪︎ Military and defense infrastructure
▪︎ and much more