From the Digital Front Lines: Diplomacy, National Security, Competition and Conflict in Cyberspace

4 Credits.

Computer attacks, disruption and data theft, along with the challenges posed by emerging technologies including Artificial Intelligence, are rapidly becoming core national and economic security matters and, consequently, an emerging foreign policy imperative. This course examines the rapidly evolving field of Cyber Diplomacy and the geopolitical and national security aspects of cyberspace and emerging technologies that it attempts to address. Students will learn about cyber threats and threat actors, the numerous contentious policy debates in cyberspace, and discuss actions governments, regional and multilateral organizations and non-state actors are taking to address the threat and governance challenges. They will explore what “cyber diplomacy” means, including diplomatic structures, doctrines, cooperative mechanisms and capabilities, examine comparative national cyber strategies, explore aspects of “cyber warfare,” assess collective action against cyber threats and explore whether deterrence is possible in cyberspace. They will also learn about regional initiatives (including at the EU level) and multi-lateral efforts in the UN, including stability frameworks and a recently concluded UN Cybercrime Convention. Students will also explore how geopolitical shifts, in particular, those by the US, have or will affect cooperation in cyberspace and in governing emerging technologies including AI. The course will be taught by Chris Painter, a former cybercrime prosecutor, senior White House official, and one of the world’s first cyber diplomats, and will be punctuated by real life cases and behind the scenes stories based on his experience.