Government and business leaders learned last week that the United States’ cyberdefenses would surely crumble in the midst of a large-scale attack on the nation’s technological infrastructure. Then they learned we were in the throes of one.

The Cyber ShockWave, an elaborate, four-hour-long exercise, was hosted February 16 by the nonprofit Bipartisan Policy Center in an attempt to gauge how the government and private sectors would respond to a serious cyberthreat—in this case a simulated attack that shut down 60 million cell phones, crashed the Internet, and caused widespread blackouts. To make simulated matters worse, the exercise also factored in homemade bomb explosions and a Category 4 hurricane on the Gulf Coast.

An attack of such magnitude would “almost certainly” overwhelm the current cybersecurity system, according to a Los Angeles Times article.

"We were trying to tee up specific issues that would be digestible so they would become the building blocks of a broader, more comprehensive cyber strategy," Michael V. Hayden told the Washington Post. Hayden, a former CIA director under President George W. Bush, created the Cyber ShockWave exercise.

A real cyberattack of less melodramatic—but nonetheless staggering—proportions was brought to light the day after the exercise. According to the Wall Street Journal, an 18-month-long coordinated attack on global computer systems has affected more than 75,000 computers at over 2,500 companies so far. The attack is ongoing.

"It highlights the weaknesses in cyber security right now," Adam Meyers, a senior engineer who reviewed the attack information at government contractor SRA International, told the Journal. "If you're a Fortune 500 company or a government agency or a home DSL user, you could be successfully victimized."

The exercise may have worked to generate new cybersecurity ideas. Participants, including White House staff, intelligence and homeland security officials, and business leaders realize more needs to be done. Among the suggested actions were drafting legislation to define government authority during an attack. The simulation showed the private sector, which owns most networks, could not respond adequately to such a calamity, according to the Post article. Privacy concerns were also discussed.

“Americans need to know that they should not expect to have their cell phone and other communications to be private—not if the government is going to have to take aggressive action to tamp down the threat,” Jamie S. Gorelick, a deputy attorney general under President Bill Clinton, told the Post.

Bold ideas during the exercise included nationalizing U.S. industries, rationing fuel, and using the military for retaliation against responsible parties. The exercise was public and aired on CNN.