A group of servers uses the internet to launch attacks against the computers of dozens of broadcasting companies, exploiting a newly discovered vulnerbilityto gain entrance. The attack scrambles the incoming satellite feed and shuts down the stations' transmissions. Televesion viewers across the country find their services discrupted * A terrorist hacks into the computer networks of hospitals around the country, exploiting security holes to gain access. Once inside these computer systems, the terrorist alters the medical directives for the patients, instructing the systems, which automatically dispense medications, to feed deadly drug combinations into these patients veins. * Hundredes of thousands of servers around the world send a coodinated flood of data packets over the internet to the main routers that handle traffic. This data overload temporarily cripples much of the internet's data flow, including email and voice transmissions. Dozens of telephonenetworks, which have begun routing some of their calls over the internet, experience connection failures. Only a few years ago, these possible events would only have been scenes from a movie. Today, security experts warn that the possibility exists. Following 09/11 the FBI's NIPC ( national infrastructure protection center ) and the SANS ( system Administration, networking and security ) institute a colation of 156,000 security and technical professionals, released the top 20 security vulnerbilities that crackers could use to damage both the internet and companies it connects. The list is available at http://www.sans.org/top20.htm. Along with the list came a sobering message: THE INTERNET IS AT RISK. "the internet is simply not ready because of these vulnerbilities. We're not ready to withstand a major Attack" , states ALLAN PALLER, the SANS institute director, at at press briefing helf for the release of the FBI/SANS top 20.