Writing the rules of cyberwar

Abstract

This paper proposes to bring the principles of the Geneva and Hague conventions to bear on cyberconflicts. These conventions establish rules for the treatment of civilians, prisoners of war, and the wounded, and they also ban the use of certain weapons, such as poisonous gas. Preserving these principles is of solemn relevance to billions of people, yet there is still no clear way to apply them to cyberattacks. To find the way forward, the EastWest Institute has created the Cyber 40, with delegates from 40 digitally advanced countries. Practical recommendations on spam and hacking have been issued, many of which have already been implemented. Other groups are also working on the legal issues surrounding cyberattacks. If parameters of basic human decency can be set in time of cyberwar, then maybe aspects of such warfare altogether can be avoided. We can bring the principles of the Geneva Conventions into the 21st century if we agree that these rules are worth preserving and agree that war need not be the infliction of maximum suffering on the enemy. Mankind can be civilized even as we engage in a new era of cyberconflicts.