STRATEGIC STUDIES QUARTERLY ♦ WINTER 2012 [ 100 ] Dr. Matthew Crosston is the Miller Endowed Chair for Industrial and International Security and founder and director of the International Security and Intelligence Studies (ISIS) program at Bellevue University. He has authored two books, several book chapters, and nearly a dozen peer-reviewed articles on counterterrorism, corruption, democratization, radical Islam, and cyber deterrence. Virtual Patriots and a New American Cyber Strategy Changing the Zero-Sum Game Matthew Crosston Most analyses on cyber deterrence draw a sharp distinction between the operational philosophy of the United States and that of authoritarian states like China and Russia. On the whole, they describe the diiculty of US eforts to maintain an efective cyber defense against brazenly ofensive Chinese and Russian threats. his analysis takes an important contrarian position on this issue which has been relatively ignored: the cyber philosophy of China might ofer the United States some useful insights. China’s ap- proach is more efective in ways that, for now, are apparently antithetical to the United States—amoral, overt, and proactive. Whether Russian cyber nationalists or the Chinese Honkers Union, their guiding principles are clear: they are willing to defend their home- land through assertive and invasive techniques and will not limit their focus to defensive capabilities that only unevenly deter attacks. When de- fending the state from any perceived enemies—whether state, substate, or nonstate—establishing an ofensive capability that instills fear is clearly a main agenda item within Russia and China. Part of this is based on their insecurities about a perceived kinetic imbalance with the United States and a willingness to be morally lexible when it comes to cyber-war norms. Arguably, the United States does not adopt a similar approach because of an apparent reluctance to mimic the policy of such distasteful regimes and an arrogance that does not concern itself with asymmetry. hese stances undermine US national security. First, for clariication, it is necessary to parse out the so-called rogue cyber behavior of China and Russia. here are signiicant diferences in the manner and philosophy with which the two states approach their We encourage you to e-mail your comments to us at: strategicstudiesquarterly@us.af.mil. Disclaimer The views and opinions expressed or implied in the SSQ are those of the authors and should not be construed as carrying the official sanction of the United States Air Force, the Department of Defense, Air Education and Training Command, Air University, or other agencies or departments of the US government.