The attacks on two major US telecoms trade associations by cyber security hackers may be elaborate attempts to hoodwink the American government into rushing through ‘draconian’ legislation which opponents say is aimed at censoring internet activity and content.

On the face of it, distributed denial-of-service (DDOS) attacks on TechAmerica and US Telecom were carried out because both organisations support a controversial new bill which proposes to give the government more power to protect its infrastructures against cyber attacks.

However, information security expert Dmitry Guseff from StarForce Technologies claims the real reason is that the hackers actually want the bill to become law. He believes hackers like Anonymous – the group claiming responsibility for the latest attacks – feel that heavy-handed, ponderous state intervention will play right into the hands of cyber criminals.

Earlier this year StarForce Technologies (www.star-force.com), an international market leader in software protection and information security, wrote to the United States Congress warning against introducing cumbersome legislation to counter the risks to national and international security.

Guseff, deputy marketing director at StarForce, urged Greg Walden, chair of the House Energy and Commerce Communications and Technology sub-committee, to consider using private sector expertise. The Russian company has never received a response.

Speaking after the attack on the two trade associations – apparently for their support of the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) – Guseff said: “I’m convinced things are not what they appear to be on the surface. The attacks are calculated measures by the hackers and are purely to further their own intentions in the future.

“They have probably taken the view that if this bill becomes law it will tie the hands of private security vendors who really could make life more difficult for hackers and those intent on breaching security.”