Cyberattack on a NATO member State can incite Article 5, the collective defense clause, said a NATO official on Monday, amid threats that disturbance in cyberspace related to Russia's invasion of Ukraine could reach out to other countries. The military alliance since the beginning has made it clear that a cyberattack attack could entice the clause, however, such a scenario is mostly considered hypothetical. Allie also acknowledges that the effect of special malicious activities (Cybersecurity) in some situations can be considered an armed attack.
"These are things that have been in hypothetical discussion for a decade, but because we've not come to any universal conclusion on what those standards should be, what level of attribution is needed, we're kind of in a very grey area," said U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner. As per officials, they will not speak about the seriousness of cyberattack, in triggering a collective response. Any action includes economic and diplomatic sanctions, conventional forces, and cyber measures.
It all depends on the seriousness of the attack. To check if a cyberattack meets the set threshold of an attack that is large enough to enable Article 5 is decided by the NATO allies. The US and Britain have been alarmed about possible cyberattacks ok Ukraine which can lead to global consequences. For instance, a harmful virus was made to attack Ukranian networks which later spread to other areas.
Another concern among cybersecurity experts is that Russia can work along with gangs that operate via malicious software, for instance, the infamous US colonial pipeline incident which happened last year. "According to Reuters "Mark posed the hypothetical case of a Russian cyberattack on Ukraine that impacts NATO member Poland, triggering power outages that result in hospital patients dying or knocking out traffic lights, causing fatal road accidents involving U.S. troops deployed there."
