Cyber-attack can be the act of war. According to the chair of NATO's military committee, Admiral Rob Bauer,

'In NATO, we have agreed amongst all allies that, in principle, a cyberattack can be the start of an Article 5 procedure',

which is a collective defence clause of the North Atlantic Treaty, stating that an armed attack against one or more of the member states is considered an attack against all.'

Admiral Bauer emphasized in his statement at the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual security conference run by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in Singapore, that

'you come close to the point where you will act upon it in a way that is close to acting on a physical attack.'

It is the major development in ongoing legal and policy debate if countries can take military self-defence actions in the case of cyber-attacks.

In the UN Cybersecurity debates, this discussion is centred around the use of self-defence, according to Article 51 of the UN Charter.

Cyberattacks as triggers for real-life war will open entirely new dynamics in the digital field with far-reaching consequences of applying existing law, protecting critical infrastructure, assuming the responsibility of states for cyber activities on their territory, and regulating tech platforms and other digital actors.

About author

DW Team

The GIP Digital Watch Observatory team, consisting of over 30 digital policy experts from around the world, excels in the fields of research and analysis on digital policy issues. The team is backed by the creative prowess of Creative Lab Diplo and the technical expertise of the Diplo tech team.