METHODOLOGICAL CHALLENGES OF DEFINING THE TERMS “CYBERSECURITY” AND “CYBER THREAT”

Abstract

In recent decades, the ways and methods of ensuring national and international security have changed dramatically. The development of computer technology has led to the rivalry in the cyber domain. Cybersecurity permeates all spheres of state and society and has become one of the most important elements of national security. Information-driven countries are developing strategies for confrontation in the cyberspace. It is this sphere that will shape the forms and content of international rivalry and conflicts in the near future. Despite the frequent use of the terms “cybersecurity” and “cyber threat”, dictionaries and encyclopaedias do not provide universal definitions of these categories. The purpose of this article is to analyse the main approaches to the definition of these concepts in the scientific literature and legal acts. The Law of Ukraine “On the Basic Principles of Ensuring Cybersecurity of Ukraine” defines cybersecurity as “the security of vital interests of a person and citizen, society and the state when using cyberspace, which ensures the sustainable development of the information society and digital communication environment, timely identification, prevention and neutralisation of real and potential threats to the national security of Ukraine in cyberspace”. Having analysed the existing definitions, D. Craigen, N. Dyakun-Zybolt and R. Pearce proposed a comprehensive universal inclusive definition, i.e. “cybersecurity” is the organization and collection of resources, processes, and structures used to protect cyberspace and cyberspace-enabled systems from occurrences that misalign de jure from de facto property rights. Cybersecurity remains both one of the most significant and most vulnerable areas in the security system, due to its relative novelty and rapid technological development of information networks. Legal regulation of activities in cyberspace is an urgent task of domestic and international law.