Japan's Pledge for an Active Cyber Defense Strategy

This research examines why Japan has pledged to implement an active cyber defense (ACD) strategy. An ACD strategy enables nations to discover, detect, analyze, and mitigate threats in cyberspace. Although Japans pacifist constitution limits its military capabilities, an ACD strategy would allow Japan to act in real time to a detected intrusion and, if necessary, use offensive cyber capabilities. To answer why Japan pledged to adopt an ACD strategy, this research identifies the reasons why nations adopt an ACD strategy and reviews the risks associated with the strategy. Japans decision to adopt an ACD strategy reflects its wish to decrease the number of new attackers, incorporate flexible layered cybersecurity techniques, and develop norms amongst allies. However, Japans changing perceptions of its security environment, its relationship with the U.S., and its pacifist culture provide unique explanations for why Japan pledged to implement ACD. The research concludes with an evaluation of Japan's current cyber infrastructure and plans for implementation. Japan's current cybersecurity infrastructure provides a foundation for the future integration of ACD, but to ensure successful and safe employment of ACD, Japan must honor its planned pledges, compose an ACD doctrine, clarify its command structure, invest in an educated cyber core supported by defensive and offensive technology, and integrate its cyber core into an ACD's functional areas.