Techno-Capitalism and Weaponization of Cyberspace

Abstract How are public–private partnerships being forged in the digital ecosystem with a view toward safeguarding national and international security? This article investigates how technologies of armed violence are constituted through practices of accommodation and appropriation in a trenchant political climate within the United States. The authority and legitimacy of these public–private partnerships are scripted in national cybersecurity strategies as universal models of balancing responsibility to empower a Zero-Trust architecture of national and international security. This article questions the authority and legitimacy of these public–private partnerships at length as they facilitate militarization and weaponization of cyberspace. The secretive deployment of cyberweapons, visible use of digital platforms to facilitate trade in conventional weapons, and use of data to facilitate weapons development deserve serious consideration for regulation and prohibition. As some developing countries become victims of cyber-attacks and others seek to partner with the United States, it is important to make visible the dynamic of public–private partnerships that facilitate militarization of cyberspace, encourage arms trade using digital platforms, and encounter mute resistance.