GDS Academy masterclass

GDS Academy masterclass:

State responses to cyberattacks: an exercise in risk management

In this talk, Dr Monica Kaminska will discuss how states struggle to punish cyber actions that are highly damaging to national interests yet fail to meet the threshold of armed attack.
The “risk society” perspective in international relations raises questions about whether deterring potential cybercriminals through threat of punishment is the rationally effective recourse in such situations.
Western policymakers have used risk management to evaluate the emerging security environment and security risks of the cyber domain. It envolves reducing likelihoods of scenarios to a level deemed tolerable or as low as can reasonable be achieved. This means that it oftens neglects punishment considerations.
This talk analyses and explains this Western policy and technological attitude. It argues that the prevailing risk management framework underlies the failure to apply proportionate punishment and potentially more effective deterrent responses to cyberattacks.

Dr Monica Kaminska is a DPhil Candidate in Cyber Security at Oxford’s Centre for Doctoral Training in Cyber Security, supervised by Dr Lucas Kello. Her doctoral research focuses on the attribution of cyber operations. Her areas of expertise are: international cybersecurity, attribution of cyber operations.

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