Offense–Defense Balance in Cyber Warfare

Abstract

The revelation of Stuxnet in 2010 as the world’s first cyber weapon of its own kind that attacked Iranian enrichment facility has led to an extensive debate on the issue of cyber security. In every cyber attack, the attacker may risk of handing over the ammunition to the enemy as a blueprint for the latter to develop a cyber weapon of its own. In cyber warfare, there is possibility that victims of cyber attack develop their own cyber weapon resulting into proliferation of cyber weapons, which is going to be awfully perilous for the security of international system given the complex interconnectivity of computer networks and internet across the world. Since, until now the cyber weapons are used in an offensive mode; therefore, the probability of more states developing offensive cyber weapons is increasing. The chapter argues that the offensive nature of cyber weapons without having an adequate defensive character is destabilizing for the international security system. In this regard, this chapter examines the offense-defense balance in the cyber warfare, and how does offense has the advantage in the cyber warfare that can destabilize the security.