War logs on: a critical approach to the frontiers of cyber warfare

Militaries are developing defensive and offensive operational capabilities in cyberspace. This paper examines the unique characteristics of cyber weapons to understand the security challenges and strategic implications posed by them. A case study analysis of Stuxnet is explored to reveal the complexities associated with both deploying and defending against cyber attacks. The findings indicate that cyber attacks are well suited for covert campaigns. Secondly, cyber weapons will likely play an auxiliary or subsidiary aspect of military campaigns using traditional kinetic technologies. Alarmist discourse surrounding cyber threats is tempered by logistical and technical feasibility of carrying out attacks. However, fears of “cyber doom” and the inability to attribute the source of attacks are destabilizing factors in the context of nuclear deterrence relationships and crisis stability.