International Legal Basis for the Right to Defense in the Cyber Era

Against the background of the growing development of information and communication technologies and the digital transformation of various fields, it has become possible to produce war using digital tools. Today a cyberattack can cause similar or more damage than a conventional operation. This, in turn, changes the traditional perception of armed attack and creates the possibility to say that cyberattacks may significantly harm the country's defense capabilities, and security, and impede the development of the society and state. Illegal access to computer networks could cause substantial damage to the functions of the critical information system, the protection of which is directly related to the vital interests of the state. This fact leads to a new understanding of the international legal basis of the right to defense. In particular, the purpose of the article is to analyze whether a cyberattack is the international legal basis that enables a state to exercise the right of defense and protect its sovereign interests.