Over the next two decades, as governments, militaries, and the global economy come to rely ever more heavily on technology to function, cybersecurity will remain a critical policy challenge with both domestic and international dimensions. From ransomware attacks affecting under-resourced schools, hospitals, and small businesses, to cyber operations on the battlefields of Ukraine, to Chinese pre-positioning of attack capabilities inside U.S. critical infrastructure, the field has become a strategic priority for policy professionals.
This course will provide an in-depth grounding in cybersecurity as a policy issue that cuts across traditional domains. No prior technical knowledge is required. The course will open with foundational sessions covering the core technological, organizational, and geopolitical structures that shape cyber policy — including the ways that AI and quantum computing are likely to transform the field in coming years. Students will then explore key domestic and international policy issues thematically: protecting critical infrastructure, combating cybercrime, negotiating norms at the UN, and the use of cyber capabilities in armed conflict. Most sessions will be anchored by a real-world incident or case study, and each will feature expert guest speakers drawn from government, the private sector, and the policy community. By the end of the semester, students will understand the major thematic challenges in cyber policy, be familiar with the organizational structures through which the United States and its allies address them, and will have developed the analytical tools to assess the policy significance of cyber incidents as they occur.