Introduction

In the past decade, cyber security has consolidated its position as one of the top national security issues of the 21st century: The dynamic interaction between technological vulnerabilities and the possibilities of their political misuse creates a problem space with little stability. As a politically relevant problem, cyber security evolves at the intersection between fast-paced technological development, the political and strategic use of these tools by state and non-state actors, and the various attempts by the state and its bureaucracies, society, and the private sector to define appropriate responsibilities, legal boundaries, and acceptable rules of behavior for this space. This introductory chapter shows how the chapters that follow shed light on socio-technical uncertainties and political responses. Sixteen chapters show how cyber security challenges states, private actors, and civil society in multiple ways because of dynamic, unforeseeable changes arising from the complex interactions between technical and social systems that have mounting political significance