“Many Western countries, and the Russian Federation, have designated cybersecurity threats as a top priority risk against national security, says the Rand Corp. In a study (.pdf) conducted for the Swedish government, which is developing a cybersecurity strategy, Rand says countries including many of Sweden’s neighbors, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and the Russian Federation have prioritized cybersecurity as a top tier national security issue. That higher prioritization hasn’t always resulted in greater funding. The United States, Great Britain and France have allocated significant funds toward cybersecurity, but the Netherlands hasn’t made a formal commitment to increase spending despite characterizing cybersecurity as a high priority …………”

Like I wrote before, this Cyber War and Cyber Security is the “equalizer”. Unlike conventional weapons or nuclear weapons, there are no Cyber Super Powers. Any country can be a Cyber Power. It can be the USA or Israel or Iran or China or Russia or even Molodva!

Some Western powers, especially the USA, seem to be working to define new things like Cyber Security and Cyber Aggression. It is no doubt tempting to seek a jingoistic definition of Cyber Laws and proper Cyber behavior. It is tempting to argue for a new Cyber doctrine that is not unlike the old European Imperialist doctrines. One that favors current world powers. It might go like the following:

“What we and our friends do to you is not Cyber Aggression, what you do to us is Cyber Aggression, Even if it is the same thing that we do to you“.

Of course it probably will not wash. I have provided down here links to some of my more recent posts on this topic:

Mr. Obama as the Hacker in Chief? Cyber Wars and Cyber Intrusions

Soviet Iranian Cyber Wars, a Congressman’s Cyber Photo

Cheers
mhg