International Law and Cyber-Propaganda : the International System Adaptation Challenges in Front of a Growing Threat
Legal scholars have been interested in the application of law, and mostly, international Law, in case of a “Cyberwar” scenario, i.e, hypothesis in which States would engage in actions which meet the “use of force” threshold or the “armed force” threshold, through cyber means. In reality, these hypotheses, even if very concerning, do not really fit with the actual power relations in cyberspace. Indeed, this new space is, above all, the scene of an ideological struggle between States. It is true that digital means allow an instantaneous broadcast of ideas throughout the world. This tool is thus a vector for power, aimed at shaping minds and public opinions across the world, in a certain way, and at influencing elections results. The purpose of this article will be to determine how this “digital information warfare” is taken into account by law, in general, and more particularly, by International Law.