Towards a theory of cyber power: The Israeli experience with innovation and strategy

Cyber power has become a topical issue for many democracies, but policy and scholarly debates often default to the cyber means alone. However, throughout history, superior means were never enough to secure strategic advantage. Strategy - seeking various ways and diverse means to serve clear ends - is the missing ingredient. The author outlines indicators of cyber power and develop an interdisciplinary framework for strategic analysis. Cyber power manifests itself when one leverages means to operate in cyberspace towards achieving a political end. The author applied this strategic ends-ways-means framework to an Israeli case study to determine its scholarly value. The analysis suggests that Israel demonstrated cyber power when applying various means towards achieving ends beyond enhanced cyber security. In soft power efforts, Israel harnessed cyber technology for economic growth and increased cooperation with like-minded nations. Israel purportedly developed and applied cyber warfare to attain its top strategic priority through hard power - preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Another finding challenges conventional wisdom on the value of formal policies for national cyber power. Security studies scholarship on strategy and economics scholarship on National Innovation Systems facilitate improved understanding of soft and hard cyber power. Strategic studies offer valuable insights into adaptation process, which can help policy makers avoid predictable pitfalls. Fostering society-wide innovation capacity crucially helps to better adapt to the volatile future. The National Innovation System scholarship helps to comprehend and obtain better means. Scholars of cyber power should venture further beyond the core technical disciplines.