The Journal of Law & Cyber Warfare provides a public peer-reviewed professional forum for the open discussion and education of technology, business, legal, and military professionals concerning the legal issues businesses and governments arising out of cyber attacks or acts of cyber war. The Journal of Law and Cyber Warfare is published twice per year by top legal professionals and scholars from the law, technology, security, and business industries. The views expressed in the Journal of Law and Cyber Warfare are those of the authors and not necessarily of the Journal of Law and Cyber Warfare.

At its current rate, technological development has outpaced corresponding changes in international law. Proposals to remedy this deficiency have been made, in part, by members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (led by the Russian Federation), but the United States and select allies have rejected these proposals, arguing that existing international law already provides a suitable comprehensive framework necessary to tackle cyber-warfare. Cyber-Attacks and the Exploitable Imperfections of International Law does not contest (and, in fact, supports) the idea that contemporary jus ad bellum and jus in bello, in general, can accommodate cyber-warfare. However, this analysis argues that existing international law contains significant imperfections that can be exploited; gaps, not yet filled, that fail to address future risks posed by cyber-attacks.

This report presents an open source analysis of North Korea’s cyber operations capabilities and its strategic implications for the United States and South Korea. The purpose is to mitigate the current knowledge gap among various academic and policy communities on the topic by synthesizing authoritative and comprehensive open source reference material. The report is divided into three chapters, the first chapter examining North Korea’s cyber strategy. The authors then provide an assessment of North Korea’s cyber operations capabilities by examining the organizational structure, history, and functions of North Korea’s cyber units, their supporting educational training and technology base, and past cyber attacks widely attributed to North Korea. This assessment is followed by a discussion on policy implications for U.S. and ROK policymakers and the larger security community.

This book presents a novel framework to reconceptualize Internet governance and better manage cyber attacks. Specifically, it makes an original contribution by examining the potential of polycentric regulation to increase accountability through bottom-up action. It also provides a synthesis of the current state of cybersecurity research, bringing features of the cloak and dagger world of cyber attacks to light and comparing and contrasting the cyber threat to all relevant stakeholders. Throughout the book, cybersecurity is treated holistically, covering outstanding issues in law, science, economics, and politics. This interdisciplinary approach is an exemplar of how strategies from different disciplines as well as the private and public sectors may cross-pollinate to enhance cybersecurity. Case studies and examples illustrate what is at stake and identify best practices. The book discusses technical issues of Internet governance and cybersecurity while presenting the material in an informal, straightforward manner. The book is designed to inform readers about the interplay of Internet governance and cybersecurity and the potential of polycentric regulation to help foster cyber peace.

This compact, highly engaging book examines the international legal regulation of both the conduct of States among themselves and conduct towards individuals, in relation to the use of cyberspace. Chapters introduce the perspectives of various stakeholders and the challenges for international law. The author discusses State responsibility and key cyberspace rights issues, and takes a detailed look at cyber warfare, espionage, crime and terrorism. The work also covers the situation of non-State actors and quasi-State actors (such as IS, or ISIS, or ISIL) and concludes with a consideration of future prospects for the international law of cyberspace. Readers may explore international rules in the areas of jurisdiction of States in cyberspace, responsibility of States for cyber activities, human rights in the cyber world, permissible responses to cyber attacks, and more. Other topics addressed include the rules of engagement in cyber warfare, suppression of cyber crimes, permissible limits of cyber espionage, and suppression of cyber-related terrorism. Chapters feature explanations of case law from various jurisdictions, against the background of real-life cyber-related incidents across the globe. Written by an internationally recognized practitioner in the field, the book objectively guides readers through on-going debates on cyber-related issues against the background of international law. This book is very accessibly written and is an enlightening read. It will appeal to a wide audience, from international lawyers to students of international law, military strategists, law enforcement officers, policy makers and the lay person.

Cyber weapons and cyber warfare have become one of the most dangerous innovations of recent years, and a significant threat to national security. Cyber weapons can imperil economic, political, and military systems by a single act, or by multifaceted orders of effect, with wide-ranging potential consequences. Unlike past forms of warfare circumscribed by centuries of just war tradition and Law of Armed Conflict prohibitions, cyber warfare occupies a particularly ambiguous status in the conventions of the laws of war. Furthermore, cyber attacks put immense pressure on conventional notions of sovereignty, and the moral and legal doctrines that were developed to regulate them. This book, written by an unrivalled set of experts, assists in proactively addressing the ethical and legal issues that surround cyber warfare by considering, first, whether the Laws of Armed Conflict apply to cyberspace just as they do to traditional warfare, and second, the ethical position of cyber warfare against the background of our generally recognized moral traditions in armed conflict. The book explores these moral and legal issues in three categories. First, it addresses foundational questions regarding cyber attacks. What are they and what does it mean to talk about a cyber war? The book presents alternative views concerning whether the laws of war should apply, or whether transnational criminal law or some other peacetime framework is more appropriate, or if there is a tipping point that enables the laws of war to be used. Secondly, it examines the key principles of jus in bello to determine how they might be applied to cyber-conflicts, in particular those of proportionality and necessity. It also investigates the distinction between civilian and combatant in this context, and studies the level of causation necessary to elicit a response, looking at the notion of a 'proximate cause'. Finally, it analyses the specific operational realities implicated by particular regulatory regimes. This book is unmissable reading for anyone interested in the impact of cyber warfare on international law and the laws of war.

This book provides a detailed examination of the threats and dangers facing the West at the far end of the cybersecurity spectrum. It concentrates on threats to critical infrastructure which includes major public utilities. It focusses on the threats posed by the two most potent adversaries/competitors to the West, Russia and China, whilst considering threats posed by Iran and North Korea. The arguments and themes are empirically driven but are also driven by the need to evolve the nascent debate on cyberwarfare and conceptions of ‘cyberwar’. This book seeks to progress both conceptions and define them more tightly. This accessibly written book speaks to those interested in cybersecurity, international relations and international security, law, criminology, psychology as well as to the technical cybersecurity community, those in industry, governments, policing, law making and law enforcement, and in militaries (particularly NATO members).