The Atlantic Council recently conducted a study in order to assess the extent to which fears about the possible escalation of cyber conflicts between countries into physical confrontations are justified. The research involved “cross-national simulation and survey experiments” and focused on the United States, Russia and Israel.
The conclusion of the study, which surprised the researchers, is that cyber conflicts are actually more likely prevent physical confrontations than to fuel them. According to the the study’s authors,”to date, cyber operations have tended to offer great powers escalatory offramps. They have provided signaling mechanisms that have let states shape an adversary’s behavior without engaging military forces and risking military escalation.”
Read more: US, Russia And Israel Show Little Appetite For Cyber Destruction
