The testimony also comes in the wake of a report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project that cited a prediction by technology experts that a catastrophic cyber-attack that causes significant losses in life and financial damage would occur by 2025.

CNN: Could China cripple U.S. power grid?

One recent GEM offering, telecom solutions provider Neolink Cyber Technology, was undersubscribed, forcing co-sponsor China Everbright Securities to take up 55 million unsold shares.

CNN: World's Worst Bourse?

And the information systems and technology unit is a leading supplier of tactical communications and cyber-security solutions.

FORBES: Why General Dynamics Could Outperform Amid Defense Cutbacks

The UK government has placed the potential cost of a single corporate cyber-attack in the hundreds of millions and it's not just traditional technology and internet-based companies that are at risk.

CNN: Why cyber attacks threaten our freedom

Still, the shield's effectiveness as a defense in cyber-warfare is far from clear: Bruce Schneier, the founder and chief technology officer of security firm BT Counterpane, argues that no single strategy can stop determined hackers.

FORBES: China's Golden Cyber-Shield

In a working paper that I have written for the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, I draw from the history of technology, military history, and disaster sociology to address this issue of cyber-doom scenarios.

FORBES: The Cyberwar Debate: Enough With The Straw Men And Scaremongers

But given that much of the cyber initiative remains classified--including key details like the anatomy of the government's new networking monitoring technology and the degree to which it will be deployed on private sector networks--building trust with the private sector will be difficult, McConnell argues.

FORBES: Bush's Cyber Secrets Dilemma