Artificial Intelligence in the Cyber Battlefield: Legal Challenges in Liability, Attribution, and Forensic Evidence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping the nature and intensity of cyber threats, enabling attackers to launch autonomous, adaptive, and anonymised digital assaults across jurisdictions. The rise of intelligent malware, algorithmic disinformation, and self-evolving cyber intrusions has introduced unprecedented complexity into legal doctrines of attribution, liability, and evidence. This paper critically examines the legal challenges emerging from the use of AI in cyberwarfare, particularly in the Indian context. It explores whether traditional principles of tort law and statutory cyber regulation are equipped to handle scenarios where harm is caused by autonomous systems rather than human actors. The evidentiary and forensic difficulties in identifying perpetrators, preserving digital integrity, and establishing intent in such cases are analysed in light of existing laws such as the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Through doctrinal study, real-world illustrations, and comparative analysis with international frameworks including the Tallinn Manual, the EU AI Act, and United States cybersecurity policy, this research proposes reforms in legal structure, evidentiary standards, and institutional architecture. It concludes that India’s preparedness for AI-enabled cyber warfare remains doctrinally underdeveloped and institutionally fragmented, necessitating urgent legal innovation and forensic modernisation to uphold digital sovereignty and the rule of law in the algorithmic era.