Law Commons^™

Civilians In Cyberwarfare: Conscripts, Susan W. Brenner, Leo L. Clarke

Susan Brenner

Civilians will play an integral role in cyberwar because civilian-owned and –operated entities will be a primary target in cyberwarfare. An attacker’s goal in cyberwar is not to capture physical territory but to erode, even destroy, the target nation’s viability as an economy and, indeed, as a sovereign entity. To do that, a cyberattacker will target the companies that own and operate aspects of the victim nation’s critical infrastructure; those civilians will need to be incorporated into a defensive cyberwarfare response structure if such a response is to be effective. We explain why the use of civilians is essential and …