A model for measuring perceived cyberpower

Abstract

Cyber Defence is a core driver in the attainment of national security for any country. Perceived Cyberpower can be determined by the analysis of the elements of cyberspace as part of national security. In this paper the Perceived Cyberpower formula that formed part of the national security determinants and formula for Perceived National Power (PNP) (Jansen van Vuuren, Leenen, Plint, Zaaiman, & Phahlamohlaka, 2017) will be used determine the level of cyberpower of a country. Cyberpower is a multifaceted phenomenon: it consists of both physical attributes (as represented by diplomacy, information, military and economics) as well as the cognitive levels of abstraction that are included in the strategic purpose or intangible part of the Perceived Cyberpower formula. Cyberpower comprises both physical attributes and an abstraction or synergy of all these attributes and thus cyberpower is best understood as a way of achieving national power, rather than simply a means or attribute of national power. It is important to understand how these elements of cyber power interrelate because that also influences the measurement of cyberpower. This paper presents a new methodology to create a model for the measurement of cyberpower. This new methodology is based on Saaty's Analytical Network Process (ANP), Zwicky's General Morphological Analysis (GMA) (Ritchey, 1998) and the Perceived Cyberpower formula (Jansen van Vuuren et al., 2017). Due to the absence of accurate values or comparable values, the judgements of knowledgeable experts can be used to rank the cyberpower of different countries. This paper shows how to measure cyberpower that represents the cyber environment of a country using the Perceived Cyberpower formula (Jansen van Vuuren et al., 2017).