How Cyber Crime affects International Relations
In order to understand the effects that cyber crime can have on the sensitive relationships between nations in the modern world, one need not look further than the recent alleged Russian hacking of the Democratic National Committee during the 2016 US Presidential Election. Secret emails were published and relationships between nations were strained. This incident has elevated cyber security in the context of international affairs to an unprecedented level in the public’s consciousness, not only in the United States but around the world.
It has been estimated that one-third of the human population on the planet has access to active internet connections and by 2020 that number will increase by 1.5 billion more. This, of course, makes hacking one of the most powerful tools for gaining political and economic advantages against enemy nations. As IoT comes into effect in 2017 and the world takes one more step towards an interconnected network where all things are connected to each other, cyber criminals will find even more incentives to hack information. Unfortunately, the growing number of active internet users will make it even more difficult to track cyber criminals down.
President Barrack Obama went on camera in December 2014 and openly declared that it was North Korea that had hacked Sony Pictures Entertainment. Unreleased copies of the film were leaked, personal information about the employees of Sony Pictures was revealed, and the threat of an attack on theatres ultimately became successful when the film was pulled from screening. Although North Korea denied responsibility in spite of proof against them, it was understood how powerful hacking is an offensive weapon in the hands of the enemy. Very few policy issues ever rise to the level of the president of the United States, and even fewer elicit the president’s public statement about them. In a remarkable development, within only a few years the debate about cyber security shifted from efforts by experts to raise awareness among senior officials, to an agreement between the United States and China and a G20 statement with explicit language about cyber security norms in 2015. Cyber defense is now an indispensable part of national defense strategies, with detailed cyber security laws and regulations being a part of every foreign policy and doctrine.
As is evident by alleged Russia’s cyber-attack on the US Democratic National Committee, there are countries out there that are developing offensive cyber wings to breach national security and sometimes they are being successful at it. Ultimately, if the events of the past few years have revealed anything, it’s that cyber security and its impact on international relations is evolving quickly and will remain at the top of world leaders’ agendas. Meanwhile, it remains an under-theorized field presenting an opportunity for academic research, but also poses significant challenges given the speed of change.
References:
Ebert, H., & Maurer, T. (2017, February 12). The impact of cybersecurity on international relations. Retrieved July 24, 2017, from https://blog.oup.com/2017/02/impact-cyber-security-international-relations/
The Effect of Cyber Crime on International Relations. (2017, March 9). Retrieved July 25, 2017, from http://www.hangthebankers.com/the-effect-of-cyber-crime-on-international-relations/
How cybercrime and cybersecurity affects nations and geopolitics. (2014, October 20). Retrieved July 28, 2017, from https://www.crowdstrike.com/blog/cybercrime-cybersecurity-affects-nations-geopolitics/
