According to a report by DefenceTalk, the chief of the NSA and USCYBERCOM, Mike Rogers, is eyeing deterrence to fight adversarial behavior in cyberspace. The article quotes from Rogers’ response to the newly revealed reports that allege malicious behavior from Chinese and Russian actors: “Right now, if you are a nation-state, if you are a group, if you are an individual, my assessment is that most (hackers) come to the conclusion that [attacking U.S. targets in cyberspace] is incredibly low-risk, that there is little price to pay for the actions that they are taking”. Furthermore: “[it is] not in our best interests in the long term as a nation to have that perception”. No information is provided concerning a strategy for such deterrence. For inspiration, here is a list of readings on deterrence in cyberspace (covers various kinds of actors):
- Brandishing Cyberattack Capabilities, Martin C. Libicki, RAND, 2013
- Offensive Cyber Capabilities are Needed Because of Deterrence The Fog of Cyber Defence (.pdf), Jarno Limnéll in The Fog of Cyber Defence (.pdf), eds. Jari Rantapelkonen & Mirva Salminen, National Defence University, Helsinki, 2013
- Cyber Warfare and Deterrence: Trends and Challenges in Research, Amir Lupovici (INSS), i-HLS, February 2013
- Deterrence and Escalation in Cross-domain Operations: Where Do Space and Cyberspace Fit? (.pdf), Vincent Manzo, JFQ66, August 2012 (Forum)
- Retaliatory Deterrence in Cyberspace (.pdf), Eric Sterner, SSQ Spring 2011
- Cyberdeterrence between Nation-States: Plausible Strategy or a Pipe Dream? (.pdf), Jonathan Solomon, SSQ Spring 2011
- Chinese Views on Deterrence (.pdf), Dean Cheng, JFQ-60, January 2011
- Cyber Deterrence: Tougher in Theory than in Practice? (.pdf), Will Goodman, SSQ Fall 2010
- When Is Deterrence Necessary? Gauging Adversary Intent (.pdf), Gary Schaub Jr., SSQ Winter 2009
- Policy and Purpose: The Economy of Deterrence (.pdf), Gen Norton A. Schwartz, USAF, Lt Col Timothy R. Kirk, USAF, SSQ Spring 2009
- Deterrence of Cyber Attacks (.pdf), Richard L. Kugler, Chapter 13 of Cyberpower I (2009), eds. Kramer, Starr, and Wentz
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