Safeguarding Pakistan’s Cyber Sovereignty in the Digital Age

Cyberspace is now not only the domain of communication and exchange of information, but it has become a significant battlefield of the modern world, affecting national security, economic prosperity and social peace. In this regard, contemporary states have faced numerous challenges and issues in the new world, one of which is related to cyber sovereignty. To Pakistan, a country geographically located in a rather volatile region, ensuring nation’s protection of its cyberspace is not only desirable but mandatory.

Cyber Sovereignty

Cyber sovereignty refers to a nation’s ability to govern and protect its digital infrastructure, data, and online activities within its borders. As Kadlecová aptly notes, if governments are to retain their sovereign capacities, they have to seize a less tangible approach given the fast pace of evolution and the emergence of new technologies in computerized space. Cyber Sovereignty demonstrates how nations intentionally harness modern technology intertwining it with the Legal Order to direct the de-centralization of powers in the cyber world. Cyber sovereignty has become one of the most well-discussed topics in the international community with both democratic and authoritarian states all over the world striving in a rather intense race to assert their right to control cyberspace.

Detecting and countering state-sponsored cyber-sphere warfare is more challenging as the distinction between cyberwarfare and conventional warfare is blurring. As for the organized, non-state actors such as hacktivists and cybercrime groups, they wield quite a lot of power in cyberspace. In their actions, they add more layers to the concept of digital sovereignty, which is already a threat to law enforcement agencies and cyber security professionals. These cover activities such as ideological cyberattacks, financial crimes, and so forth. In addition, as defensive operations ‘get tougher’, the transnationality of the internet only aggravates the issue. In this case, it becomes relatively hard to apply conventional approaches such as deterrence. Instead, what is required is a new approach that targets cyberspace: an approach that has not yet arrived.

Enhancing Pakistan’s Cyber Readiness: Steps Forward

Pakistan has recently admitted to the installation of firewall. According to the officials, the step is justified by the need to counter threats to national security, prevent the dissemination of ‘extremist’ information and materials, and protect religion and culture from prohibited content. However, the main purpose of installation among public is recognized to be state’s attempt to have a tighter control over the cyberspace of the country. Pakistan could also have been influenced by the apparent success of such policy in certain countries for instance China. The reaction of the public has been mixed, while some think that regulating the internet will decrease crimes and maintain social order, others show a concerning attitude stating that this can violate privacy and freedom of speech saying and may hinder protests and infringe on people’s rights.

Ideally, states should employ protective systems for the decrease of cyber risk and the enhancement of cyber productivity because ICTs may be employed for positive or negative purposes. These methods include technological and administrative control for protection of ICT-dependent facilities and can be defined as cybersecurity. In the same way as sociopolitical goals are delivered through ICTs, these latter are considered not only technological tools, but also social institutes. In this regard they are a powerful social determinant of what is often referred to as cyber power, or national power. According to the official definition, cyber power means the ‘application of cyberspace to generate benefits and shape occurrences in other kinetic domains and across the five modes of operation’. Consequently, the effective use of ICTs instrumental in facilitating an effective and efficient government, better mechanisms of law and order, growth of the economy at a faster rate, and dominance in the military more efficiently.

However, even though Pakistan is now having a rapidly growing ICT infrastructure and Internet connection, several positive impacts originate from this attack, many significant cybersecurity threats. Such threats include cyberwar, organized cybercriminal activities, hacking, as well as cyber-terrorism. This is particularly so given the general insecurity situation within Pakistan as well as in its surrounding region. Cyber espionage targeting Pakistan is quite frequent while Indian hackers are frequently attacking Pakistan’s financial sector. Pakistan is also vulnerable to cyberattacks by terrorist organizations and as conflict has shifted towards the cyber-sphere more and more this is a possibility that India may launch cyber-attacks against Pakistan.

Future Outlook

Pakistan has to consider national cyber readiness as a priority to prevent itself from such problems. Despite some minor legislative developments in the cybersecurity field, the government has made inadequate efforts to construct technical organizations, organizational frameworks, and global partnerships. Thus, Pakistan has to develop an effective and comprehensive cybersecurity policy that integrates with the objectives of all related security, administrative, and economic entities. There is also the need to enhance collaboration between security agencies involved in cybersecurity operations. The latter pertains to strengthening the technological aspect on the Pakistani side and raising the level of cybersecurity awareness among the population.