Cyberwars

Cyberwar: Will you know it if you see it?

Lately, my news feeds and Google search alerts have been filled with talk of cyber war. Article after article has referred to a number of cyberattacks as acts of cyberwar, but clarification is needed. While there is not total agreement internationally about what constitutes an act of cyberwar, there are some examples that should be used to properly classify these events.

Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has gone on record and stated that an act of cyberwarfare is defined as a cyberattack on critical infrastructure, the economy or U.S. military operations. To further clarify his definition, he said the cyberattack that was attributed to North Korea against Sony did not rise to the level of an act of war.