Abstract:
Cyberspace has joined the domains that constitute the landmarks of state sovereignty, following the latter’s rapid move toward the digitization of sectors and the transfer of activities to this space. This trend has been accompanied by major challenges, foremost among them the security and safety of this space from threats. This study aims to shed light on these emerging threats that endanger global security and stability, by highlighting their uniqueness and specificity compared with other threats. This study relies on the descriptive approach to identify cyberspace, the threats associated with it, and the role played by the United Nations bodies in confronting this threat and preserving global security and stability. It also relies on the deductive approach to extract legal provisions and rules from the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime and the International Criminal Court’s public policy document on cyberattacks. This study concluded that cyber threats operate in a space that differs from the other arenas of conflict that we have known in traditional threats. This space has posed a real
challenge to state sovereignty, as it does not recognize borders, and it has also contributed to affecting friendly international relations through the numerous cyberattacks witnessed by the world. It then attempts to assess the impact of those threats on the international arena, and how far the international response has gone in confronting the cyber threat. It also presents the technical and diplomatic solutions adopted by the actors of the international community to counter it, and presents Algeria’s experience in confronting cybercrime and limiting its effects internally.