Cyber Warfare and the Laws of War

Author: Heather Harrison Dinniss
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9781107011083
Published In: July 2012
Format: Hardback , 358 pages
Jurisdiction: International ? Disclaimer:
Countri(es) stated herein are used as reference only

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The information revolution has transformed both modern societies and the way in which they conduct warfare. Cyber Warfare and the Laws of War analyses the status of computer network attacks in international law and examines their treatment under the laws of armed conflict. The first part of the book deals with the resort to force by states and discusses the threshold issues of force and armed attack by examining the permitted responses against such attacks. The second part offers a comprehensive analysis of the applicability of international humanitarian law to computer network attacks. By examining the legal framework regulating these attacks, Heather Harrison Dinniss addresses the issues associated with this method of attack in terms of the current law and explores the underlying debates which are shaping the modern laws applicable in armed conflict.

• Comprehensive analysis covering both the resort to force and the laws of armed conflict • Written in a clear and jargon-free manner • Explores the underlying debates which are shaping the modern laws applicable in armed conflict

Acknowledgements	xi
Table of cases	xiii
List of abbreviations	xvi
1 The world in which we live and fight	1
1 Computer network attacks	4
2 Law and war in the internet age	8
3 Societal trends generally	11
3.1 The information revolution and digitisation	11
3.2 Globalisation, interdependency and the changing world order	17
3.3 The rise of the knowledge economy	20
4 Military trends	21
4.1 A change of purpose	23
4.2 Network-centric warfare and effects-based operations	24
4.3 Outsourcing and civilianisation	25
5 Terminology and definitions	27
5.1 New laws for old?	28
5.2 Methodology	30
5.3 A word about examples and hypotheticals	31
6 Conclusion	32
Part I Jus ad bellum	35
2 Computer network attacks as a use of force in international law	37
1 Force defined as armed force	40
2 Definition of armed force	49
2.1 State actions	53
2.2 Theories of force – scholastic writings	58
3 Computer network attacks as a use of force	62
3.1 Characteristics of computer network attacks	65
4 Conclusion	74
3 Armed attack and response in the digital age	75
1 Armed attack	76
1.1 Anticipatory self-defence	82
1.2 Pinprick attacks or accumulation of events theory	93
2 Self-defence against non-state actors	95
3 Attribution	99
4 Necessity and proportionality	102
5 Countermeasures against unlawful acts	105
6 Security Council authorisation and collective measures	109
7 Conclusion	113
Part II Jus in bello	115
4 The applicability of the laws of armed conflict to computer network attacks	117
1 Armed conflict	118
1.1 The requirement of armed force	122
1.2 Intervention of the armed forces	123
2 Application to computer network attacks	126
2.1 Application during conventional armed conflict	127
2.2 Computer network attack on its own	129
2.3 Computer network attacks in support of conventional attacks	134
3 Territory	134
4 Conclusion	137
5 Participants in conflict: combatant status, direct participation and computer network attack	139
1 Combatant status	140
1.1 Requirements of combatant status	144
1.2 Saboteurs and spies	151
2 Direct participation by civilians	159
2.1 Requirements of direct participation	161
2.2 Offensive computer network attack	167
2.3 Computer network attack system support	167
2.4 Generic IT support	170
2.5 Mercenaries	172
3 Child soldiers	175
4 Conclusion	178
6 Targeting and precautions in attack	179
1 The principle of distinction	180
2 Legitimate military objectives	184
2.1 Nature, location, purpose or use	185
2.2 Effective contribution to military action	188
2.3 Definite military advantage	190
3 Dual-use technology	193
4 Protection of civilian objects	195
4.1 Attacks and operations	196
4.2 Indiscriminate attacks	202
5 Proportionality	205
5.1 Knock-on effects	207
5.2 Dual-use systems	208
6 Precautions in attack	209
6.1 Verification of military objectives	211
6.2 Choice of weapons	212
6.3 Choice of targets	216
7 Precautions against the effects of attacks	217
7 Measures of special protection	220
1 The environment	221
1.1 Additional Protocol I	222
1.2 ENMOD Convention	224
1.3 Other protections	226
2 Cultural property	227
2.1 The legal framework	228
2.2 Attacks on, and damage to, digital works	233
2.3 Theft, pillage or misappropriation of digital works	235
3 Installations containing dangerous forces	239
4 Objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population	243
5 Hospitals and other medical units	244
5.1 Location and access to medical databases	244
5.2 Hospital ships	247
6 Non-defended localities and demilitarised zones	247
6.1 Non-defended localities	248
6.2 Demilitarised zones	248
8 Means and methods of warfare	250
1 Law of weaponry	251
1.1 General principles	252
1.2 Explicit prohibitions of weapons	258
1.3 Article 36 obligations	260
2 Perfidy and ruses of war	261
2.1 Ruses of war	261
2.2 Perfidy	263
2.3 Misuse of protected symbols and emblems	264
3 Destruction and seizure of property	265
3.1 Booty	270
3.2 Occupied territory	272
3.3 Pillage and plunder	274
3.4 Enemy-owned property on the territory of a belligerent	276
4 Conclusion	277
Concluding remarks	279
Appendix 1 Selected computer network attack examples	281
Appendix 2 Glossary of selected computing terms	293
Bibliography	297
Index	321