Three years after the Stuxnet computer worm first became known, its threat is still being evaluated — but what's clear is that it has raised the stakes in the worldwide race to create cyber weapons. Initially spread through infected removable drives, the malware's ultimate target was industrial supervisory software — specifically that of Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment facility, U.S. officials later told NBC News. "In short, this is an example of malware-aided industrial espionage," said a virus expert at a Slovakia-based security firm. When the Stuxnet worm infected the facility's control software, the motors that controlled the uranium centrifuge failed to operate correctly. But the cyber warfare didn't there: According to the Iranian ambassador, the attack prompted Tehran to prioritize developing cyber weapons of its own.
