القانون الدولي والهجمات الإلكترونية ما دون استخدام القوة

Abstract

With the increasing reliance of countries on cyberspace to store and transmit data and information, cyber attacks appear as a breach to cybersecurity and information security. The research deals with two forms of cyber attacks, namely cyber espionage and cyber sabotage. It discusses the issue that international law does not explicitly criminalize espionage during peace, which may encourage some countries to carry out espionage operations against other countries without legal deterrence. Cyber espionage may be a first step towards more illegitimate interference in other countries’ affairs, as obtaining confidential information without the consent of the victim state may put the attacker in a position of power that allows it to know the weaknesses of the victim state and thus influence it either through political pressure or cyber sabotage. This research offers a legal understanding on how international law deals with cyber espionage and sabotage through activating the principles of sovereignty and non-interference as the cornerstone in protecting the sovereignty of the state, over its property including information and infrastructure, as well as its political integrity.