I'm with Vox on this one, Anon's threat is over-stated. So far the big hits and breaches of government security haven't come from hackers like Anonymous, it's been from the old fashioned way; informants leaking info out onto sites like WikiLeaks. In such a large entity such as the government the threat's always been from within. If ever the grid does go down, it's going to be largely from the act of a disillusioned Government employee on the inside, not the sole work of teenagers in their bedrooms.

Eh, they'll only get noobs. The government is truly inept.

Isolated incidents will be brushed off, but if they continue to pester the government at increasing levels, you can guarantee that will be the result.

It was this part of your post that provoked the response.

The uptick in attacks, or the appearance of such, will enable the legislature to use their favorite tool, fear, to pass sweeping, restrictive legislation on everyone. They won't simply assemble a task force to take down anonymous. (See Iraq, Afghanistan)

Oh, I am a 100% with ya. That's why I am passing around so much information on how to keep people's computers safe and kind of introducing people to Black Hat protection. It's not illegal, but it will confound.

Ah, my bad. Carry on. :ugeek

Noscript and perfect passwords ftw.

"Between now and 2030, the electric grid will confront significant new challenges and inevitably undergo major changes," the researchers said. "Despite alarmist rhetoric, there is no crisis here. But we do not advise complacency."

Well of course we should be scared little sheep, and we should grant the government extraordinary surveillance and rendition powers to indefinitely detain and interrogate anyone acting "suspiciously" with a computer...