What Is Cybersecurity For?

How will protecting our digital infrastructure shape our future?

Cybersecurity is one of the key practical and political challenges of our time. It is at the heart of how modern societies survive and thrive, yet public understanding is still rudimentary: media portrayals of hoodie-wearing hackers accessing the Pentagon don’t convey its complexity or significance to contemporary life.

This book addresses this gap, showing that the political dimension is as important as the technological one. It accessibly explains the complexities of global information systems, the challenges of providing security to users, societies, states and the international system, and the multitude of competing players and ambitions in this arena.

Making the case for understanding it not only as a technical project, but as a crucial political one that links competing visions of what cybersecurity is for, it tackles the ultimate question: how can we do it better?

'What is cybersecurity anyway?' on Transforming Society

“A nuanced and yet accessible introduction to the fascinating world of cybersecurity. Stevens brings a refreshingly critical eye to some of its main challenges and practices, clearly showing how cybersecurity is fundamentally political.” André Barrinha, University of Bath

“Insightfully acknowledging that cybersecurity is social and political, Stevens offers a comprehensive but still succinct overview that is a valuable resource to anyone interested in learning how cybersecurity challenges have emerged, how different forms of security come at the expense of each other, and how actors address their insecurities.” Amir Lupovici, Tel Aviv University

“A great book to engage with the security implications of a rapidly digitalizing world beyond the technical. Heed its central message: cybersecurity is about and for humans!” Myriam Dunn Cavelty, Center for Security Studies, ETH Zürich

“By far the clearest and most insightful reflection on the purpose of cybersecurity policies and activities, their evolution, their failures and successes that I have recently had the pleasure of reading. It tells you that cybersecurity is not, and never was, a fringe field of technical security, but rather a key guarantor of our way of life. Accessible to a wider audience, the book makes a fundamental contribution to society’s understanding of why we should all strive to learn more about cybersecurity.” Helena Farrand Carrapico, Northumbria University

“A long overdue look at the human and political dimensions of cybersecurity, this book covers a lot of ground with real insight, vision and intelligence.” Madeline Carr, University College London

"An excellent primer on cybersecurity, with an emphasis on the often overlooked human and political dimensions. An essential resource." Ron Deibert, University of Toronto

1. Introduction: A 'Wicked Problem'

2. How Did We Get Here?

3. Cybersecurity, Cyber Risk

4. States and Markets

5. International Cybersecurity

6. Cybersecurity and Human Security

7. Conclusion: A Global Conversation