While accurate attribution of the ultimate source of a cyber attack is sometimes difficult, the determination does not have to be airtight. To the extent that false flags are imperfect and rumors of the source of an attack are widely deemed credible (though not legally probative), reputational damage to an attacker’s soft power may contribute to deterrence.
尽管准确地确定网络攻击的最终来源有时十分困难，但也不是一筹莫展。由于伪旗的不完善性以及关于攻击来源的传闻被广泛认为是可靠的（尽管未经法律验证），对攻击者软实力的名誉伤害也能形成威慑。