Abstract
Interstate conflict has developed beyond conventional tactics to include the cyber realm, making cybersecurity a key component of international relations and an integral part of state defense plans. Research in international security has included the analyses of the relative success or failures of particular cyberattacks. However, the instigators behind these attacks receive comparatively little attention, leaving a gap in knowledge for when, why, and where cyberthreats are likely to emerge. Recent analysis has found that democratic institutions are likely to hinder state-sponsored cyberattack initiation. A consideration that the latest wave of global democratic backsliding could be fueling cyberthreats must be made. I explore this linkage between democratic backsliding and cyberthreats using a qualitative, case study approach. By comparing changing political systems with frequency and severity of state-sponsored cyberattacks, I show how increased state cyberthreat usage often aids in eroding democratic institutions and values, and how the process of democratic backsliding itself paves the way for utilization of cyberthreats.
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Dr. Michael Lapke
Document Type
Paper
Disciplines
International and Area Studies | International Relations | Political Science | Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration
DOI
10.25776/vt11-af37
Publication Date
4-14-2023
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Included in
International and Area Studies Commons, International Relations Commons, Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons
A Qualitative Analysis of the Relationship Between Cyberthreats and Democratic Backsliding
Interstate conflict has developed beyond conventional tactics to include the cyber realm, making cybersecurity a key component of international relations and an integral part of state defense plans. Research in international security has included the analyses of the relative success or failures of particular cyberattacks. However, the instigators behind these attacks receive comparatively little attention, leaving a gap in knowledge for when, why, and where cyberthreats are likely to emerge. Recent analysis has found that democratic institutions are likely to hinder state-sponsored cyberattack initiation. A consideration that the latest wave of global democratic backsliding could be fueling cyberthreats must be made. I explore this linkage between democratic backsliding and cyberthreats using a qualitative, case study approach. By comparing changing political systems with frequency and severity of state-sponsored cyberattacks, I show how increased state cyberthreat usage often aids in eroding democratic institutions and values, and how the process of democratic backsliding itself paves the way for utilization of cyberthreats.