The Spatial metaphor as a catalyst to the Development of Cybersecurity Policy / Amit Sheniak

Date: 

Wed, 29/11/2017 - 09:00 to 10:30

Location: 

Yael room, Institute of Criminology

Over the last decade, publics have increasingly been exposed to a security reality that includes cyber related threats and instability attributed to states, sub-state organizations, and individuals. A continuous process of internet securitization had led to an increase in the allocation of government and private resources to a new field of expertise that is commonly known as “cybersecurity,” followed by the initiation of a variety of cyber-specialized intelligence branches, military units, and cyber-arms production entities within different security apparatuses around the world.

Although cybersecurity policy and implementation have been scrutinized by academics, practitioners, and litigators within different disciplines, such as international relations, international law, political theory, and so forth, some of the core questions regarding the essence of cybersecurity would appear to remain unanswered. This assessment is accentuated by the coexistence of different perceptions and definitions among experts and decision makers regarding the concept of “Cyberspace,” that was “Blacked Boxed” (Latour, 1987) to serve as the foundation of Cybersecurity policy, military doctrine, and force buildup.

In this seminar, I will present a research project based on the study of official US doctrine and policy and standardization documents and statements. I will attempt to unravel this concept, identifying “constitutional moments” (Jasanoff, 2011) in the shift from the technical perception of the internet to the spatial-like perception of “cyber-space.” Based on this study, I will attempt to consolidate my claim that this transition effected the creation of professional and organizational cyber-knowledge as they are publicly presented today.