President Barack Obama. (Photo: Wikimedia)

At some point in October this year, President Obama signed the slightly creepy-sounding and secret Presidential Policy Directive 20, a source tells The Washington Post. According to the Post, the directive gives the military license to "act more aggressively" when combating cyber-attacks directed at major U.S. networks.

In essence, anyone waging war on the country via the internet is on notice:

The new directive is the most extensive White House effort to date to wrestle with what constitutes an “offensive” and a “defensive” action in the rapidly evolving world of cyberwar and cyberterrorism, where an attack can be launched in milliseconds by unknown assailants utilizing a circuitous route. For the first time, the directive explicitly makes a distinction between network defense and cyber-operations to guide officials charged with making often-rapid decisions when confronted with threats.

Policy Directive 20 is a refresh of a presidential directive signed during the Bush administration and falls in line with the Obama administration's concerns regarding internet-based threats to the nation's infrastructure.

Given the reported mid-October signing of Directive 20, it's worth noting the timing of Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta's October 11 speech about cyber threats. In his address, Secretary Panetta outlined a nightmare scenario combining real and cyber attacks, resulting in what he termed a "cyber Pearl Harbor." Mr. Panetta said such devastating actions would result in "physical destruction and loss of life, paralyze and shock the nation, and create a profound new sense of vulnerability."

Secretary Panetta. (Photo: flickr.com/usnavy)

Earlier this week, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta took a little trip to the Intrepid Air and Space Museum, where he gave a speech. The New York Times reports that in that speech, he proceeded to do what appears to have been his damnedest to scare the ever-loving crap out of everyone, everywhere about the prospect of cyberattacks on our precious bodily fluids American infrastructure.

Painting a picture that sounds an awful lot like a Michael Bay film, Secretary Panetta warned: 

“An aggressor nation or extremist group could use these kinds of cyber tools to gain control of critical switches,” Mr. Panetta said. “They could derail passenger trains, or even more dangerous, derail passenger trains loaded with lethal chemicals. They could contaminate the water supply in major cities, or shut down the power grid across large parts of the country.”

Mass chaos: It's not just for Deceptacons any more!

He also dropped the term "cyber-Pearl Harbor," because of course.

The New York Times also points out that Mr. Panetta is currently stumping for new legislation demanding new standards for things like power plants and gas pipelines. So, you know--grain of salt and all.