Topic B: Cyber Warfare and the Threat to

International Security
By: Elizabeth Upton
Security Council

Introduction
This council will discuss the issue of cyber warfare internationally. Cyber warfare is a
growing issue for every nation. Nations have increased their security to combat cyber warfare;
however, cyber hackers are continuing to learn and the issue continues to grow. The problem has
become even more urgent; and the need to protect our countries from the possibility and the
reality of cyber criminals and terrorists is growing. Though nations are attempting to protect
ourselves by using technology, cyber criminals can often penetrate this technology with ease.
Security systems are becoming much more sophisticated, but so are the international criminals
who try to beat those systems. Furthermore, if future criminals can get through the security
protocols set in place, then they have the ability to then orchestrate the types of attacks they
would like. For this topic, delegates will be discuss possible solutions to stop cyber warfare from
occurring, and how to protect the international community from intrusion.
Background Information
Cyber warfare is the new form of terrorism and ability to gain more control. Though there
is much debate upon what cyber terrorism really is, the United Nations defines cyber warfare as,
warfare conducted over cyberspace through cyber means and methods. However, there is
severe speculation upon what that directly indicates. The people who commit these online crimes
are called Cyber criminals. These people are gifted hackers who can penetrate highly secured
security systems and do what they please with the information they obtain and can launch highly
sophisticated attacks. The media attention on this topic is astronomical around the world. It is
predicted that this will escalate into more serious attacks. There are many different possible

disasters that can occur because of cyber warfare, from crashing the electricity in major cities, to
taking over plane controls.
Though there hasnt been a serious cyber attack as of yet, there is always the possibility
for it to happen when we least expect it. The cyber attacks as of late are more focused on
gathering information on Intelligence Agencies than taking control. For example the recent hack
at the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); it was only to gather information on
people involved in any way with the Agency. The information that the alleged Cardinals
gathered could in the future be used as leverage.
The speculation upon the future cyber attacks have put expectations in place on how
nations can protect
themselves when there is
another hack. Delegates
must to be able to come up
with inventive ways to
protect our nations from
cyber criminals. More than that, delegates must be able to create a resolution that will further
criminalize cyber warfare. This feat however is quite difficult; according to statistics cyber hacks
are scattered, theres no true pattern to any hacks recently. The top 4 motivations behind these
attacks are Cyber Crime, Hacktivism, Cyber Espionage and Cyber Warfare. Interestingly
enough, Cyber crime is the highest ranked motivation while Cyber warfare is the lowest.
China and the United States are the two most common countries where cyber hacks
originate. China is highest ranked hacking country with 41% hacks originating there. The United

States is the second highest ranked hacking country with 10% originating. China is said to have
the most sophisticated hacking network. Considering that China is responsible for the most
machinery production in the world, its not surprising that some people would get to know
machines, the way they work, and their networks so well. The hackers that commit these cyber
crimes have become so familiar with their computers and other smart machines that they can do
practically anything with them.
One example of a cyber attack was an attack on some of the South Korean national
websites back in 2011. This cyber attack actually consisted of a series of attacks with the
common goal of penetrating the South Korean websites, similar to the attack in 2009 on South
Korean websites as well. Among those hit were government ministries, military headquarters,
US forces in Korea, the National assembly, and major banks. It is thought that the attacks were
projected inwards by websites that further shared the virus until it reached the wanted websites.
Close to 29 networks and websites were hit in this attack. This is only one example of the
numerous attacks that have been distributed in the past few years, and ones that are yet to come.
Some hackers have become infamous because of their ability to get in and out of secured
networks either, without being noticed or without being traced. Their ability and their
willingness to commit the crimes they do has landed a good amount of hackers on a number of
intelligent agencies most wanted lists. Hackers have become known all around the world as
criminals to protect you against. Everyone involved in business and politics is involved with
some type of computerized machinery every day of their life, and hackers prey on our use of
technology. Important people in the world are more susceptible to hackers: our country officials,
our presidents and kings, Intelligent Agencies, Business CEOs, and even everyday people are
targets of hackers. We need to learn as a unity how to protect ourselves and each other from the

computers of the hackers that can infiltrate our intelligence and use our own knowledge against
us.
International Involvement
The United Nations has just recently started true debate on this growing international
issue. There have been bills passed separately in different countries, but there are no
international resolutions on cyber warfare. However the United Nations have been discussing
this topic to length for a while now.
NATO has formed a task force, the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defense Centre of
Excellence (NATO CCD COE). It is an international military organization that focuses on a
range of aspects related to aspects of cyber security. This NATO organization is a big step
towards completely eradicating the issue altogether. Once cyber tactics are understood and
research is compiled, the international community is one step closer to eliminating cyber warfare
overall.. The steps to analyze and predict the moves of these cyber criminals may as well be the
thing that protects nations from a complete collapse of international security and protection.
Conclusion
Cyber Warfare is an upcoming and pressing topic, existing everywhere in the world.
Delegates have the task of coming up with a resolution that will eradicate this worldwide issue.
Delegates must consider the many complex components of this issue and take into account their
own national governments use of cyber warfare tactics.

Guided Questions
1. What serious cyber crime has your country faced?
2. Who are your nations enemies and allies?
3. What do your enemies and allies think about the possibility of these attacks?
4. What countries are most vulnerable to cyber attacks?
5. Has your nation alone passed any bills considering cyber terrorism?
6. Are there any threatening cyber criminals in your country?
7. Does your country know of any infamous cyber criminals?

Works Cited
http://www.hackmageddon.com/2015/07/13/june-2015-cyber-attacks-statistics/
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R43955.pdf
http://www.un.org/press/en/2014/gadis3512.doc.htm
http://unchronicle.un.org/article/towards-cyberpeace-managing-cyberwar-through-internationalcooperation/
http://www.wsj.com/articles/were-losing-the-cyber-war-1435508565