The issue: The nature of cyber warfare involves technology, the military, and laws as well as the whole society. However, government decision makers, security professionals, and academic researchers from various disciplines have different views on this critical issue, lacking integrated and multidisciplinary approaches in understanding and controlling this challenging situation.

The approach: This book goes a step further in promoting multidisciplinary approaches from the perspectives of computer science, military strategy, international law, political science, and military ethics. Different from the headline stories in the TV news, this book provides in-depth discussion behind many renowned cyber-attack incidents. The introduction section and chapter 1 of the book first define cyber warfare by examining its history. Chapter 2 provides a taxonomy of cyber warfare from the computer science point of view. In chapter 3, cyber warfare attribution is discussed as one of the most difficult issues facing researchers. Chapter 4 proposes the feasibility of strategic analysis on cyber warfare from a military point of view. Chapter 5 studies jus ad bellum, that is, when and how a cyber war is justified. Chapter 6 studies jus in bello, that is, the rules to follow in a cyber war. Chapter 7 discusses the ethical side of cyber warfare.

The conclusion: Even though the author does not directly integrate multiple disciplines in the discussions, readers from various backgrounds surely can gain different perspectives from reading the book.

The bottom line: With the media industry being the boy who has been crying “cyber wars” ever since the beginning of the 21st century, it is good to find out whether and how the “wolf” will eventually come. More importantly, a close and complete observation and analysis on cyber hostile activities carried out by nation-state players in history helps all of us be more realistic and ready when cyber warfare becomes an imminent reality instead of pure imagination in Hollywood movies.