We no longer defend simply against nations. We fight factions. We are attacked by ideals and ideologues.
We also fight against a deadly sin that has driven more war than politics and pride — greed.
On Thursday, federal authorities announced the indictment of two Russian nationals in Pittsburgh. Maksim V. Yakubets and Igor Turashev are accused of distributing financial malware in a conspiracy involving computer hacking, wire fraud and bank fraud schemes.
The total haul cited by investigators is about $70 million, with attempts to get another $200 million from 300 victims worldwide.
But the indictments were in the backyard because so were some of the victims, like First National Bank in Pittsburgh, Penneco Oil Company of Delmont, Kurt J. Lesker Company in Jefferson Hills, First Commonwealth Bank in Indiana, 84 Lumber in Eighty Four, and Sharon City School District in Mercer County.
The investigation spanned 10 years. It was a decade of assault on homeowners and taxpayers and the people who write paychecks and the places that cash them.
These sustained attacks on our economy from our largest institutions to our smallest businesses to individuals must be seen for what it is. It is more than a crime of convenience like pickpocketing or a smash-and-grab. It is bigger than organized crime, happening on a scale that would make Al Capone dizzy.
It is warfare without shots fired across the bow. It is a complex campaign that authorities say is coordinated between multiple criminal organizations with individual specialties for maximized effect.
“To successfully combat them, we as law enforcement partners must do the same,” said FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich.
Cyber criminals are the new axis of evil. In World War II, it took America’s serious entry into the conflict and partnership between allies to end a global threat.
Today it will take no less.
