Shadow warrior: The outsourcing of the United States' offensive cyber capabilities

Abstract

The cyberspace has emerged as a conscientious topic for military leaders and senior policymakers as they attempt to ensure critical national infrastructure is secured against cyberattacks. The previous decade has seen the re-emergence of the state actor as a primary threat actor; a large-scale threat actor that is heavily funded, well equipped, and has the ability to avoid legal ramifications for their actions. The cyberspace presented new opportunities of attack and manoeuvre below the threshold of armed response and has transformed the way conflicts are fought and disputes are resolved. This dissertation aims to analyse the effect that the private sector has on the United States' offensive cyber capabilities. Specifically, this research will answer the question of 'How does the private sector support the development of the United States offensive cyber capabilities?' To meet the growing threat of cyber warfare, new organisational structures were rapidly devised and established within the U.S. Department of Defense. Literature on the two key themes, the cyberspace as a strategic capability and the cyberspace as an outsourced commodity, was reviewed to determine the factors contributing to the increase in outsourcing offensive cyber capabilities. Then a qualitative case study on the newest branch...