Speaker
Description
Keywords: Planetary Defense Ethics, Extramilitary Domain
Age-old concepts of sovereign military power have traditionally transferred into new physical and technological domains (e.g., air, undersea, electromagnetic spectrum) to create security. However, some recent emerging threat domains have been excluded from nations’ military responsibility. Two current examples are cyber security and planetary defense. By addressing these topics outside of the military context and associated treaties, laws, and ethics; states, organizations, and individuals are developing new methods of defending their interests.
Across the globe, companies must defend themselves against cyber security attack from outside their country’s borders with no assistance from their government’s military defense. Cyber security is treated more like a natural disaster with attendant insurance, civil agencies, and remediation industry. Organizations have also developed industry-based Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs) to pool information and resources. The resulting cyber security ethical frameworks are based on professional codes, technology considerations, and applicable laws.
Planetary defense is another extramilitary domain with many parallels to cyber security. Information sharing and analysis is a critical aspect of the field and requires cross-organizational collaboration. The threat is more likely to be adequately addressed as a mutualized risk than by each individual alone. In addition, the threat manifests from an extraterritorial location (like a cyber advanced persistent threat) so it is not readily affected by legal sanction.
This paper explores the potential benefits of using cyber security ethical and cooperation frameworks to inform the field of planetary defense. It also highlights pitfalls in using climate change-related parallels with planetary defense based on systemic and political factors. The resources applied to cyber security are orders of magnitude greater than planetary defense. To the degree that cyber security investment’s benefits are transferable they should be leveraged by other threat domains.