Paper - Hoover Institution Press
Strengths Become Vulnerabilities: How a Digital World Disadvantages the United States in its International Relations
Abstract
This essay seeks to explain why the United States is struggling to deal with the “soft” cyberoperations that have been so prevalent in recent years: cyberespionage and cybertheft, often followed by strategic publication; information operations and propaganda; and relatively low-level cyber disruptions such as denial-of-service and ransomware attacks. The main explanation for the struggle is that constituent elements of U.S. society—a commitment to free speech, privacy, and the rule of law, innovative technology firms, relatively unregulated markets, and deep digital sophistication—create asymmetric weaknesses that foreign adversaries, especially authoritarian ones, can exploit. We do not claim that the disadvantages of digitalization for the United States outweigh the advantages, but we present reasons for pessimism.
Want to Read More?
The full text of this publication is available at the original publication source.- Recommended
- In the Spotlight
- Most Viewed
Recommended
Analysis & Opinions - Foreign Affairs
How the U.S. Can Play Cyber-Offense
Analysis & Opinions - Strategist
How Will New Cybersecurity Norms Develop?
Analysis & Opinions - Lawfare
Evaluating the U.K.'s ‘Active Cyber Defence’ Program
In the Spotlight
Most Viewed
Report - Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School
NATO at Seventy: An Alliance in Crisis
Analysis & Opinions - The Washington Times
The myth of Saudi support for terrorism
Analysis & Opinions - National Post
War Between China and the United States Isn't Inevitable, But It's Likely: An Excerpt From Graham Allison's "Destined for War"