China is winning the cyberwar

Sanctions are very much in vogue, so I asked Ian Bond of the Centre for European Reform, if the US should sanction China for its cyber provocations. He said it depends: “Intrusions for espionage purposes [commercial or against the state] are annoying, but part of the normal business of states.” Offensive action, on the other hand, such as “strikes that cripple critical national infrastructure, might rise to the level of an act of war if they cause casualties,” Bond added. However, “attribution is often difficult and can’t always be determined quickly,” if at all. “Like-for-like retaliation is unlikely, outside of a context where there is already a war going on. But a state attacked in this way in peacetime might, if it’s certain of the origin of the attack, impose sanctions.”