CIAO DATE: 06/2014
May 2014
Danish Institute for International Studies
Cyberwar is the new buzzword in the media, in the military, among politicians and in academia. This working paper contributes to the theory-scarce debate on cyberwar and returns to Carl von Clausewitz’s On War (1832) to examine cyberattacks as a new form of attack in future wars. In doing so, the working paper not only targets the misunderstandings and exaggerations prevalent in the cyber-literature, but also demonstrates that Clausewitz’s On War, albeit two centuries old, is a key work in understanding the relationship between cyberattacks and war.
Resource link: Bringing Clausewitzian clarity to cyberspace: The cyberwar mirage and the utility of cyberattacks in war [PDF] - 198K