1 Introduction 2 International Relations Meets Technology Theory
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Notes 1 Introduction 1. A recent example from September 2010 involves an online attack on an Iranian nuclear reactor. A purpose-built computer worm caused the reactor to spin too quickly resulting in system failure and lasting physical damage. While there has been some speculation that the United States and Israel were behind this attack, it has not been possible to trace its origins (Beaumont, 2010; Seltzer, 2010). 2. This debate was initiated by the Evgeny Morozov’s observation that those who comment on the politics of the Internet tend to fall into ‘utopian’ or ‘dystopian’ camps. This was later articulated in the publication of Morozov’s book, The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom (2011). Clay Shirky responded arguing that despite its pitfalls, the Internet remains a ‘posi- tive force for democracy’ (2009). These two views formed the poles of an ongoing debate which heightened during the events of the ‘Middle East Spring’. 2 International Relations Meets Technology Theory 1. Within realist thought, there are a range of views on how power should be defined, that is, whether as a means to an end or an end in itself. This book will not provide a comprehensive catalogue of variations in realist approaches to power. Here, it is concerned only with understandings of the relationship between technology and power in IR and as such is proposing two broad con- ceptual approaches – the first of which – the nation-state power view – is most closely associated with a broadly realist approach. 2. Employing a Fordist approach, Alastair Buchan wrote of the decline of ter- ritory and population as a form of power with emphasis instead placed on states’ technical and scientific base. In his view, ‘power, influence, or pres- tige can now be increased by the better organization of existing domestic resources and the application of science and technology to them’ (Buchan, 1972, p. 177). Richard Rosecrance also makes an argument for the declining relevance of territory in The Rise of the Virtual State: Wealth and Power in the Coming Century (1999). 3. In an example of US vulnerability, for at least a year during the lead up and execution of Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf war, a group of Dutch hackers probed 34 different American military computer systems, gathering information on weapons systems, troop deployments and even battle orders. They amassed a significant quantity of sensitive data and then attempted to negotiate a sale to the Baathist regime. The Iraqis, taking the offer to be a hoax, did not respond but the vulnerability was clearly demonstrated (Markoff, 1991; Christensen, 1999). 191 192 Notes 4. Probably the most evolved of these is the Council of Europe’s Convention on Cybercrime (also referred to as the ‘Budapest Convention’), which is a multilateral treaty drafted by the Council of Europe with four observer states: Canada, the United States, Japan and South Africa. The full text can be found at http://www.coe.int/t/dc/files/themes/cybercrime/ default_en.asp. 3 A (Select) Political History of the Internet 1. For an institutional history, see Over the Years, on the DARPA website which is available at http://www.darpa.mil/body/overtheyears.html. For commen- tary, see Leslie (1993, p. 120) and Edwards (1997, p. 260). 2. Note that this is a much abbreviated version of events. There are many excel- lent accounts of the development of Internet technology. For further and more detailed information, see, for example, Abbate (2000). Also, there were alternatives to TCP/IP (Clark, 1988, pp. 106–14). 3. The bill would eventually be passed in 1991 as The High Performance Com- puting Act of 1991 (http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c102:20:./temp/ ∼ mdbsTGH4wS:e37166:). For a summary of this legislation, see the National Coordination Office for Networking and Information Technology Research and Development. Available online at http://www.nitrd.gov/congressional/ laws/pl_102-194.html. 4. Hypertext refers to using a visual identifier (such as blue, underlined text) to indicate that there is more information associated with that text. Hypertext technology itself was not new when Berners Lee applied it to the Internet. Indeed it has a long and interesting history of its own but conceptually, it is generally credited to two Americans, Ted Nelson and Douglas Englebart. There was considerable activity around hypertext technology throughout the 1970s and 1980s but it was Berners Lee (with Robert Cailliau) who suc- cessfully married it to the Internet. A range of accounts can be found in Gilles and Cailliau (2000), Berners Lee (2000) and Abbate (2000). 5. In September 1993, President Clinton gave a speech to the United Nations General Assembly outlining this strategic framework which was reiterated in several subsequent speeches by senior officials including the Secretary of State and the National Security Advisor (Christopher, 1993; Clinton, 1993; Lake, 1993). 6. Although it is rarely discussed in these terms, the privatization and commer- cialization of the Internet was, in large part, a political development – not a technological one. Some accounts go as far as to suggest that the Inter- net was ‘wrested’ from the grip of American politics by the overwhelming force of the private sector. However, as stated above, policy documents from 10 years prior clearly state that the intention of the US government was to privatize and commercialize the network in order to maximize the poten- tial for contributing to US economic growth and improve its international standing. 7. H.R. 775: The Y2K Dispute Resolution Act was signed into law by President Clinton on 20 July 1999. In addition, there was a House Resolution: H.R. 775 to establish certain procedures for civil actions brought for damages relating to the failure of any device or system to process or otherwise deal with the Notes 193 transition from the year 1999 to the year 2000, and for other purposes. This was agreed to on 11 May 1999. 8. This communication failure is tragically ironic, given that some of the origi- nal developmental research for the Internet took place within the context of a programme aimed at establishing a secure communications system capable of withstanding a nuclear attack. Senator Ron Wyden, Chairman Subcom- mittee on Science, Technology and Space, Response of the Technology Sector in Times of Crisis, hearing before the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, US Senate, 5 December 2001, p. 20. 9. The FCC was established by the Communications Act of 1934. It is directed by five commissioners appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate for five-year terms. In addition, the president designates one of the commissioners to serve as chairperson. Only three commissioners may be members of the same political party. None of them can have a financial interest in any commission-related business. For more information, see the FCC website at http://fcc.gov/aboutus.html. 10. The 2002 ruling applied to cable services but in 2005 this was extended to DSL services. For the complete ruling, see FCC 02–77, Declaratory Ruling and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, in the Matter of Inquiry Concerning High- Speed Access to the Internet Over Cable and Other Facilities/Internet Over Cable Declaratory Order Proceeding/Appropriate Regulatory Treatment for Broadband Access to the Internet Over Cable Facilities, GN Docket 00–185, 15 March 2002, www.fcc.gov. 4 Cyber Security 1. This is distinct from the ‘security dilemma’. The security dilemma suggests that if states acquire a surfeit of military capabilities, their peers will be compelled to follow suit. In this paradox, the states which have most com- prehensively engaged with Internet technology do not prompt their peers to do so – although the economic benefits may attract them. Rather, those states which have not been able to develop Internet technology have also not become dependent upon an insecure system. This is the paradox. If the Inter- net suffered a major disruption, it might have almost no impact on many third-world states whereas it would have major consequences in the United States. 2. Her views will be elaborated on in the chapter but see this speech for a specific reference to this point (Clinton, 2011). 3. It is possible that Mandiant does not provide more substantive or compelling evidence in order to protect their practices and sources, but it is not possible to determine if this is the case or if the report really is as circumstantial as it appears. 4. Senator Robert Bennett chaired the Y2K Committee established to address the potential disruption of the global date change on computers from 1999 to 2000. It is regarded in US political circles as having been a successful interven- tion of an Internet security threat and is often held up as an example of what government can do. Partly as a consequence of the success of that operation, Senator Bennett is a highly respected voice in government approaches to cyber security. See the executive summary of Clinton (2000, p. vi). 194 Notes 5. Technology journalist Scott Berinato traces the use of this term back to 1991 when it was used by D. James Bidzos, the president of a computer security firm. However, the term had become common amongst policymakers by the late 1990s (Berinato, 2003). 6. This is discussed during the hearing in the context of the Presidential Decision Directive issued by President Clinton in 1998. PDD-63 ruled that federal agen- cies were to achieve ‘reliable, interconnected, and secure information system infrastructure’. However, as Willemssen testified ‘weaknesses continued to be reported in each of the 24 agencies covered by our review’ (Willemssen, 2001, p. 4). 7. This bill was introduced to the 107th Congress as HR 5524.