May 22, 1998 Clinton Backs Cyber-Terror Warnings Filed at 1:31 p.m. EDT By The Associated Press ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- Nuclear warheads were the stuff of Cold War stockpiles and beachheads the battlefields of times gone by. To counter today's threats, President Clinton told a new class of Naval officers, the United States must amass germ-warfare vaccines and battle terrorists in cyberspace. ``If our children are to grow up safe and free, we must approach these new 21st century threats with the same rigor and determination we applied to the toughest security challenges of this century,'' the president said today in a commencement speech at the U.S. Naval Academy. For the 769 graduating midshipmen and 139 midshipwomen whose dress uniforms shone blindingly white in the sun, Clinton painted a near-apocalyptic picture of the enemies who threatened their mission beyond the academy. ``As we approach the 21st century, our foes have extended the fields of battle from physical space to cyberspace, from the world's vast bodies of water to the complex workings of our own human body. Rather than invading our beaches or launching bombers, these adversaries may attempt cyber attacks against our critical military systems and our economic base,'' Clinton said. Clinton also called for an interconnected ``cyber-system'' that would warn and minimize damage of attacks on computers that control the stock market, banking, utilities, air traffic and other so-called ``critical infrastructure.'' Private companies including IBM, Dell Computers, Bell South and GTE have already agreed to participate in the ``cyber-system,'' which Clinton wants to be fully operational by 2003, administration officials said. ``If we fail to take strong action, then terrorists, criminals and hostile regimes could invade and paralyze these vital systems, disrupting commerce, threatening health, weakening our capacity to function in a crisis,'' Clinton said. He appointed National Security Council adviser Richard Clarke, who specializes in such issues as drug trafficking and terrorism, to head a new office on infrastructure protection and counter-terrorism. Former Sen. Sam Nunn and Jamie Gorelick, formerly the Justice Department's No. 2 official and now Fannie Mae's vice chairwoman, will lead a private industry advisory group. [Warnings of bio-terrorism snipped]