- "Cyberwarfare is the use of cyber attacks against an enemy state, causing comparable harm to actual warfare and/or disrupting vital computer systems."
Understanding cybersecurity and its impact on military practices can help us analyze how military organizations must adapt to face emerging cyber threats.
Cybersecurity: The practice of protecting computer systems, networks, and data from digital attacks, theft, and damage. This is the foundation of cyberwarfare.
Cyber Intelligence: Information gathering, analysis, and dissemination to understand the motivations, capabilities, and tactics of potential cyber adversaries.
Cyber Espionage: The stealing of sensitive information or intellectual property from foreign governments, corporations or individuals.
Cybercrime: Criminal activities committed using computers or the internet such as hacking, identity theft, and distribution of illegal content.
Cyber Terrorism: The use of computer networks to carry out terrorist activities such as cyber-attacks against critical infrastructure or institutions.
Cyber Warfare Tactics: The methods, strategies and tactics used in the conduct of cyber warfare including hacking, malware, phishing, and social engineering.
Offensive Cyber Operations: The use of cyber technology to launch attacks on digital targets to disrupt, degrade, destroy or control opponent’s infrastructure.
Defensive Cyber Operations: The use of cyber technology to defend against and mitigate the impact of cyber-attacks.
Cyber Weapons and Capabilities: The development, discovery, and use of tools, techniques, and technologies to achieve cyber objectives.
Cyber Policy and Governance: The regulations, policies, and frameworks that govern the conduct of cyber warfare including international treaties, national laws, and organizational guidelines.
Cybersecurity ethics and legal issues: Examines and discusses the ethical and legal considerations arising from cyberspace operations.
Cybersecurity education and awareness: Training and education initiatives targeted toward improving individuals’ understanding of cyber risks, and how they can mitigate them to protect themselves and their organizations.
Cybersecurity culture and leadership: The development of policies, leadership practices, and management styles that create and foster a cybersecurity culture within organizations.
Malware Attacks: This involves introducing harmful software programs or viruses into the target system to disrupt or damage its functionality.
Denial of Service (DoS) and Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Attacks: These attacks involve bombarding the target system with requests until it becomes overwhelmed and ultimately crashes.
Phishing and Spear Phishing: These are social engineering techniques that aim to trick the target into divulging sensitive information, such as login credentials or financial details.
Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs): These are long-term, stealthy attacks that aim to covertly compromise a system and exfiltrate sensitive data over an extended period.
Stuxnet-like attacks: These are complex, targeted attacks designed to infiltrate critical infrastructure systems, such as power grids or nuclear plants, and immobilize them.
Ransomware Attacks: These involve encrypting critical files on the target system until a ransom is paid.
Cyber Espionage: These are intelligence-gathering operations conducted via the internet to undermine foreign governments or corporations.
Insider Attacks: These involve trusted insiders operating within a target organization, using their access and knowledge to deliver attacks or compromise data.
Cyber Propaganda: This involves spreading disinformation or propaganda via the internet to promote a specific political or ideological agenda.
Cyberterrorism: These are attacks on critical infrastructure, such as power grids or communication systems, with the aim of causing widespread chaos and destruction.
- "Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, manipulation, or economic warfare."
- "There is significant debate among experts regarding the definition of cyberwarfare, and even if such a thing exists."
- "One view is that the term is a misnomer since no cyber attacks to date could be described as a war."
- "An alternative view is that it is a suitable label for cyber attacks which cause physical damage to people and objects in the real world."
- "Many countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Russia, China, Israel, Iran, and North Korea have active cyber capabilities for offensive and defensive operations."
- "As states explore the use of cyber operations and combine capabilities, the likelihood of physical confrontation and violence playing out as a result of, or part of, a cyber operation is increased."
- "However, meeting the scale and protracted nature of war is unlikely, thus ambiguity remains."
- "The first instance of kinetic military action used in response to a cyber-attack resulting in the loss of human life was observed on 5 May 2019..."
- "...when the Israel Defense Forces targeted and destroyed a building associated with an ongoing cyber-attack."
- No direct quote for this question.
- No direct quote for this question.
- "Many countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Russia, China, Israel, Iran, and North Korea have active cyber capabilities for offensive and defensive operations."
- "Some intended outcomes could be espionage, sabotage, propaganda, manipulation, or economic warfare."
- "There is significant debate among experts regarding the definition of cyberwarfare, and even if such a thing exists."
- "An alternative view is that it is a suitable label for cyber attacks which cause physical damage to people and objects in the real world."
- "However, meeting the scale and protracted nature of war is unlikely, thus ambiguity remains."
- "As states explore the use of cyber operations and combine capabilities, the likelihood of physical confrontation and violence playing out as a result of, or part of, a cyber operation is increased."
- "The first instance of kinetic military action used in response to a cyber-attack resulting in the loss of human life was observed on 5 May 2019..."
- "...when the Israel Defense Forces targeted and destroyed a building associated with an ongoing cyber-attack."