Al-Shabab said it had advance warning of the attack and Mr Allex - a codename for the French intelligence agent - was not in Bulo Marer at the time.

BBC: Denis Allex: French agent 'killed' by Somalia al-Shabab

An IP reputation service, once the NASDAQ site had been identified as compromised through either publication or detection by continual IPS reputation evaluation, would have given system administrators early warning of the attack.

FORBES: How reputation services enhance IPS

In a crisis, the temptation would always be to hold these missiles on a hair trigger, to be launched on warning of an incoming attack rather than lost to an enemy strike.

ECONOMIST: It's worse than you thought