The Need to Fill Legal Vacuum in International Law to Deal with Non-State Actors in Cyber Operations

The increasing involvement of the cyber domain in modern-day living has impacted the world order and its various actors. Cyberinfrastructure is involved in most societal activity, which becomes more accessible and vulnerable. It is essential to regulate any conflict around this space as these conflicts impact human life. However, Due to the lack of legal framework, non-attribution and existing ambiguity concerning cyber-attack, the non-state cyber attackers pose a global security challenge. This paper contributes to the ongoing discussion on the necessity of obligatory norms and rules under International Law to regulate such conflicts. International cooperation is necessary due to the limited scope of international law to deal with non-state actors, as there are difficulties in applying general international principles. The paper concludes that cyber governance is urgent and requires the attention and cooperation of the international community to stop the possible future destruction due to cyber-attacks by non-state actors. After a decade-long experience of alarming cyber-attacks, the international community could not agree on a specific governance mechanism to deal with non-state cyber-attacks.