Columbia International Affairs Online: Working Papers

CIAO DATE: 08/2012

Meeting the Cyber Security Challenge

Gustav Lindstrom

June 2012

The Geneva Centre for Security Policy

Abstract

While most policymakers agree that there are substantial risks in cyber space, there is disagreement on whether or not it poses a threat to national security. The divergence in opinions is most obvious when references are made to terms such as cyber war and cyber warfare. In spite of these differences, there are many reasons why policymakers should care about developments in cyber space. With society’s growing reliance on cyber space, a disruption can have wide ranging implications and cascading effects. At the level of national security, there are also indications that government systems are routinely probed for weaknesses. It comes as no surprise that the losses from sabotage, the theft of intellectual property, and cyber crime are counted in the billions of Euros. While the prospects of cyber war are unlikely, it is increasingly evident that a cyber dimension is likely to be part of future conflicts. According to a preliminary assessment carried out by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC, 33 countries presently include cyber warfare in their military planning and organization. These might include “cyber capabilities for reconnaissance, information operations, the disruption of critical networks, for ‘cyber-attacks’, and as a complement to electronic warfare and information operations.”