While governments need to prepare for cyberattacks involving espionage or malware, the likelihood of a sophisticated attack like Stuxnet is small, according to a study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

In a cyberwarfare report (PDF) released today, the OECD said that the risk of a catastrophic attack on critical national systems has been exaggerated. The majority of cyberattacks are low-level and cause inconvenience rather than serious or long-term disruption, according to a co-author of the report, professor Peter Sommer of the London School of Economics.

"There are many scare stories, which, when you test, don't actually pan out," Sommer said. "When you analyze malware, a lot is likely to be short-term, or fail."

Read more of "Cyber-war risk is exaggerated, says OECD study" at ZDNet UK.