From AFP: China, the United States and Russia are among 20 countries locked in a cyberspace arms race and gearing up for possible Internet hostilities, according to the head of web security firm McAfee. Dave DeWalt, chief executive and president of the US firm said the traditional defensive stance of government computer infrastructures has shifted in recent years.

“This movement from a defensive posture to a more offensive posture is just very obvious,” he said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. McAfee said it has identified at least five countries with cyber weapons, including the United States, China, Russia, Israel and France.

“We’re now seeing 20 plus countries, governments arm themselves for cyber warfare, cyber espionage, cyber offensive capabilities,” said DeWalt. “There’s an arms race going on in cyberspace,” he told AFP.

From Wired: The report, “In the Crossfire: Critical Infrastructure in the Age of Cyberwar,” was commissioned by anti-virus firm McAfee and coordinated by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC. (photo: Defense Tech)