Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: In the dynamic landscape of cyberspace, states grapple with multifaceted interests related to national security, economic prosperity, sovereignty, and diplomacy. To safeguard their interests, states initiate policies and strategies that generate political and legal impacts in international relations. This fact sheds light on the importance of studying the concept of the state's interest from a legal perspective to conclude its legal status and implications. To achieve this purpose, this article explores the intersection of legal theory and the concept of state's cyber interest, specifically through the lens of the Rechtsgutstheorie-the theory of protected legal interests-to draw parallels between the Rechtsgutstheorie's conception of protected legal interests and the cyber interests that states seek to safeguard and examine how the requirement of this theory to balance competing interests applies to state behavior in cyberspace. The Rechtsgutstheorie contributes to delving into the normative justifications for protecting specific cyber interests and acknowledging the complexities of applying the Rechtsgutstheorie to cyberspace, including attribution difficulties, harm thresholds, and the need for global consensus.
Author: Y. A. Abdelkarim
Institution: Leeds Beckett University
Language: English
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4406233680