He points out that hardware solutions can only partially protect against denial-of-service-attacks like the one last spring when hackers caused thousands of computers around the world to send messages that overwhelmed websites in Estonia and temporarily crippled the government.
It would cause billions of dollars in damage.
Aphids, alone, cause tens of millions of dollars in crop damage each year.
An unknown hacker caused thousands of Windows-based university and government computers linked to the Internet to crash on the eve of Senate testimony by William H. Gates, the chairman of the Microsoft Corporation, authorities said yesterday.
The attack is said to have hit more than 300,000 computers in 150 nations, causing billions of dollars of damage.
T0rn, with a zero, was not as menacing as the Code Red, Sircam and Nimda worms and viruses, which caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to corporate computer networks last year.
McKinnon, 43, is due to be extradited to Virginia amid allegations that he caused hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of damage to US government computers - but campaigners say he should be tried in the UK.
But the 43-year-old from Wood Green, north London, denies malicious intent or causing hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage as alleged by the US government, which accuses McKinnon of "the biggest military computer hack of all time".
Natural disasters have killed hundreds of thousands of people worldwide and caused hundreds of billions of dollars in property damage.
The storm knocked over buildings, drowned basements, and caused tens of billions of dollars in damages.
