The Italian Strategic Response Against Cyber Threats and the Terrorist Use of Cyberspace

What recently happened in Paris has brought up again the never-ending issue related to the need to check terrorist groups' attempts to launch attacks in Italy and throughout Europe. This paper firstly tries to give a scientific definition of what cyber-terrorism should be referred to as, also by identifying, on the other hand, activities that can be only considered as an use of the Internet for terrorist purposes. Then the paper analyzes the Italian strategic response against cyber-threats through the examination of the Italian Reports on the Security Intelligence (2009-2014), tracing back the evolution of the Government approach toward such issue. Moreover, the main Italian strategic documents are examined, with regard to the strategic and operational guidelines set out in order to carry out an organic, yet flexible response to cyber-threats. Lastly, the paper also provides a legal definition of when a generic software or malware can be defined as such a cyber-weapon in the specific context of warfare.