I know that times have changed of late, but when I read of young midshipmen getting only four or five hours of sleep at night while engaged in a spirited competition with the other service academies over “honeypots,” I must confess that a smile of welcome recollection comes to mind. Ah, youth!
But then I read the article:
It might not have looked like it, but there was a war going on yesterday between midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy and the “Red Team” at the nearby National Security Agency at Fort Meade.
The Red Team — a group of NSA hackers tasked with breaking into U.S. government and military information systems to expose vulnerabilities — was “attacking” servers set up by computer science and information technology majors at the Annapolis military college. The midshipmen, in turn, were trying to defend their network.
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The Naval Academy won last year’s competition, and this year is joined in the exercise by cadets from the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N.Y., the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn., and the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology in Ohio.
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Some did administrative work, monitoring all the e-mails sent and how the server was being used, properly or improperly.
Others monitored the attempts to access the system internally and externally, and one team of Mids was set up to monitor a group of “honeypot computers.” These computers, designed to be less secure, act as decoys so the Red Team will spend its time hacking into computers that won’t slow down the Mids’ overall system.
Feh.
Youth: It’s entirely squandered on the young.
Red team sounds like fun…
There was a show on Frontline once about Information Warfare that showed a similar exercise. In that case the Red Team changed a ship icon on a battle display to a clown face. Creepy stuff for those with malicious intent.
Funny you should mention Midshipmen. I returned late last night from the yard. I went down to see the first parade of the season. They have incorporated the bagpipe drill team into the parade. The bagpipe team has come a long way in the last few years and sounded and looked terrific.
I met up with 2nd Co at T Court and asked a plebe standing near by “who is in charge of this rabble?” He seemed a bit tense and said “Ah, Midn Lt. Mossholder, Ma’am.” “And where is he?” I asked. “Ah, he isn’t here yet, Ma’am.” “So, he’s late, and probably deserves a spanking… and I’m just the person to give it to him!” The plebes thought that was hysterical!
The yard looked beautiful with tons of blooming tulips and pansies planted in large swaths. My son said the tulips were planted a short while ago as whole plants (not bulbs last fall.)
Walking over to the parade field I encountered the head drill instructor (a Marine, of course) for the Brigade. “Good afternoon Ma’am, and how are you today?” “I am just fine! You look sharp today” I said. He said “and so do you Ma’am, I like your handbag.” I said “well, you know who looks really sharp? 2nd company, that’s who. Look how locked on they are!” “Well, emmm, ahh, being the drill instructor here, I might have a different opinion Ma’am…” I said, “well then, as drill instructor, it must be absolutely obvious to you that 2nd company is totally squared away!” He laughed and turned to his compatriot and said “I think we have a biased observer here.”
I ate dinner with my son in King Hall. I always used to discount my son’s disparagement of the food… Not any more. We were served a dried out piece of chicken, plain boiled rice, overcooked broccoli and, a salad that I was warned to stay away from. All of this came to us in stainless steel slop trays, not very appetizing. On the table was a large juice box labeled “wildberry.” It was blue cool aid! As if the food wasn’t bad enough, it had to be 100 degrees in there. I had sweat running down my temples while trying to gag down the chicken. I know, someone eating dinner in a tent in Iraq has it much worse. Maybe King Hall is conditioning? The entire meal took about 10 minutes!
Anyway, as this is my son’s last year at the Academy, it was good to go down for the day and enjoy the beautiful surroundings.
I wonder if the diggers and fillers are still busy?
The tulip planting reference generated a flashback.
How about coloring the dirt green for June Week?
Were-Kitten and Kris in NE,
You need to come down to the yard for the next parade and get it out of your system…
It does it for me (sort of)!
Babs, it’s a good thing I’m sitting here by myself because your comments (particularly the last one) left me in hysterics!
*ROFL*
Babs – I’m SO in!
they practice marching??
coulda fooled me.
Spffft!