The threat from complexity

In the New York Times, September 12, 2007, “Who Needs Hackers?” John Schwartz describes the vulnerability posed by “…increasingly complex networks…” which can be more troublesome than deliberate Internet attacks. A seemingly minor failure can cascade into a major problem.

“Society is growing ever more dependent on computers and computer networks….” When automation goes bad, the machine power works against you and can greatly magnify the downside. The high performance of complex systems is obtained at a cost. They can perform really well until something goes wrong, then any failure can be catastrophic. Complex systems just don’t fail gracefully. And failures tend to be unpredictable.

The computer software embedded in the “Star Wars” space antimissile defense system was so extensive that it could never have been adequately tested. Current versions of antimissile system are also of questionable reliability.