THE MEDIUM OF COMPUTER NETWORK OPERATIONS: THE INTERNET

According to the premise that any application of law requires the knowledge of the circumstances of the case, a short introduction into the technical fundamentals both of the Internet and the methods of computer network operations is necessary as a first step in order to understand the legal challenges connected therewith.

As a second step the relevance of the Internet for post-industrial societies, the State and its armed forces will be identified in order to illustrate the possible objectives of military computer network operations.

THE INTERNET AS A NETWORK OF NETWORKS: TECHNICAL FUNDAMENTALS

While there exist numerous definitions of the term ‘Internet’, in the following reference shall be made to a definition stemming from the United States Code which describes it as:

From this definition becomes apparent one of the fundamental characteristics of the Internet, namely that it is not a physically genuine data network, but an overarching concept of a loose network, the construction of which is based on decentralisation and interconnectedness of smaller networks and singular host and server computer systems. A unified network architecture with generally accepted protocols enables the individual systems to communicate with each other. This communication is achieved by sending messages over the communication links, thereby using a standard network operating protocol suite – the most important protocols thereof being the Transmission Control Protocol and the Internet Protocol, or TCP/IP – which specifies the data formats and rules of transmission.

The Internet is a so-called packet-switched network, meaning that data to be transmitted via the Internet will be split into several packets – inter alia depending on the size of the data – which contain the actual data to be sent, the destination and source address and other information that supports its reliable transmission.