BOOKS & MORE: Mythos Cyberwar

We have learned to fear the cyberwar: For decades, Hollywood has been feeding us images of dark forces that blackmail states and detonate nuclear warheads using secret and highly complex computer networks. The myth of cyberwar has deeply ingrained itself in our imagination. Politics and the military take advantage of this fear. It's high time to ask: Does cyberwar really exist?
Political scientist Thomas Rid is certain: Cyberwar does not exist. The documented cyber attacks so far cannot be classified as war, because they lack the targeted violence against people, the brutal destruction, which is inseparably linked to the concept of war.
However, we cannot relax just yet. Because Thomas Rid also makes it clear that there are real dangers from cyberspace, such as espionage, sabotage, and subversion. In a detailed and knowledgeable manner, he tells of espionage attacks, sabotage acts, and attempts to destabilize governments and initiate coups using information technology.
Nevertheless, Rid does not see these as acts of war, and it goes far beyond just rhetorical disarmament: We need to understand who benefits from the myth of cyberwar. And we need to define the real dangers we are facing in order to be well-prepared to meet the security requirements.

“The Myth of Cyberwar: About digital espionage, sabotage, and other dangers” by Thomas Rid, Edition Körber, 2018, 352 pages, Euro 18,-

CYBERWAR on SPARTANAT:

- “The digital defense scenario is only partially successful”, Lieutenant General Ludwig Leinhos, Inspector of the Cyber and Information Space Command of the German Armed Forces in an interview.

- “We see many targeted cyber attacks”, says the Head of the Department “Cyber Analysis & Defense” at the Fraunhofer Institute, Elmar Padilla.

- “Cyber attacks are available for 20 dollars”, says Harald Summa, CEO of the DE-CIX Group AG. He talks about critical infrastructure, the omnipresence of DDoS attacks, and the ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court on surveillance by intelligence services.

More on this topic: HERE you can download the Wehrtechnischer IT-Report for free.