The Cyber Pearl Harbor redux: helpful analogy or cyber hype?
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Authors
Wirtz, James J.
Subjects
Advisors
Date of Issue
2018
Date
Publisher
Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
Language
Abstract
This article defends the utility of employing the Pearl Harbor analogy to characterize contemporary cyber threats, especially threats facing the United States. It suggests that despite the fact that policy-makers are keenly aware of the nature of today’s cyber threats, this knowledge does not necessarily protect them from falling victim to a strategically significant cyber surprise attack. The fact that elected officials and senior officers fall victim to strategic surprise attacks launched by known adversaries is the problematique that animates the study of intelligence failure. The article concludes with the observation that just because scholars and policy-makers can imagine a ‘Cyber Pearl Harbor’ does not guarantee that they can avoid a Cyber Pearl Harbor.
Type
Article
Description
The article of record as published may be found at https://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2018.1460087
Series/Report No
Department
National Security Affairs (NSA)
Organization
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Identifiers
NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funder
Format
3 p.
Citation
James J. Wirtz (2018) The Cyber Pearl Harbor redux: helpful analogy or cyber hype?, Intelligence and National Security, 33:5, 771-773, DOI: 10.1080/02684527.2018.1460087
Distribution Statement
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.