HACKERS GET INTO PENTAGON'S COMPUTERS

Another chilling bit of information about our federal government comes in the form of news that the Pentagon's computers are being invaded by hackers.

So far, the computer thieves, who must break codes and break through electronic fire walls to get to information the Pentagon thought was adequately protected from outsiders, haven't reached any classified files. Or so the Pentagon says.

The latest round of hacking apparently involves a group of computer whizzes who are now bragging -- anonymously, of course -- about their successes starting as long ago as last October. This past February, another hacker in Israel was tracked down by the Pentagon.

Information used to target missiles and to pinpoint troop positions using the Global Positioning System is among the data that has been taken from the Pentagon's computers.

For all of its secrecy and safeguard, the Pentagon appears to be vulnerable by way of the computer networks that link most of the world together these days.

For Americans, though, there is a question hanging overhead: If the Pentagon's computers aren't safe, whose are?