NATO Launches ‘Cyber Coalition 2013’ Exercise

NATO today launched a three-day major cyber defense exercise named ‘Cyber Coalition 2013’ to ward off massive, simultaneous attacks on member states and their partners.

"Cyber attacks are a daily reality and they are growing in sophistication and complexity," Jamie Shea, a NATO official specializing in emerging security challenges, said in a statement. "NATO has to keep pace with this evolving threat."

Participants include around 400 IT experts, legal specialists and government officials, according to a statement from Estonia's Defense Forces. Over 100 of them are operating from the National Defense College in Tartu and another 300 are based in various staff centers around the continent.

NATO will practice combating simulated cyber attacks against computer networks. Officials will test the experts' response speed, coordination and decision making capabilities.