Hidden by Sovereign Shadows: Improving the Domestic Framework for Deterring State-Sponsored Cybercrime

Abstract

This Article analyzes the domestic legal framework applicable to state-sponsored cybercrime. The Article describes several instances where state sovereigns perpetrated cybercrimes in the United States. It then outlines the legal framework that the US government utilizes to hold accountable those who perpetrate such crimes. This Article argues that the current legal framework does not have a deterrence effect on sovereign states engaged in such activity and that prosecutors who seek to apply the current framework against state sovereigns or who misattribute the source of such attacks could negatively impact US foreign policy. To remedy these defects, this Article asserts that relevant US law should apply extraterritorially and that Congress should contemplate passing a statute that abrogates sovereign immunity for state sponsors of cybercrime and subjects such states to civil liability.