Historical Development of Cybersecurity Studies: A Literature Review and Its Place in Security Studies

Abstract

This study discusses the formation and development of cybersecurity studies since the creation of the Internet. Although the origin of cybersecurity studies dates back to the 1970s, hacking, malicious software, computer intrusions, and espionage attacks that took place in the 1980s led cybersecurity studies to form in the area of computer science. By the 1990s, the Internet began to be used widely, and an increase in the level of attacks in cyberspace began to occur. This period was a major reason for the growth in writing on software and network security. Network security has become a key priority for governments and many industries. Cybersecurity studies have become a priority area in security studies with the increasing complexity of cyber threats towards 2000s. States and some supranational organizations have started to create cybersecurity strategies. The security of critical infrastructure and computer networks has begun to emerge as a high-priority area. It has been observed that the transition from classical security policies to modern security policies, which should be established in the information age, has begun. Cybersecurity studies were taken more seriously after the 2007 Estonian attacks, especially in the 2010s. In this period, the intensity of attacks on critical infrastructures and the occurrence of some physical attacks caused cybersecurity to deepen and become an issue on an international scale. Cybersecurity studies continue to be shaped by being influenced by many different disciplines, regardless of any discipline, with the important discussions and cyber incidents that have taken place in recent years. Therefore, the studies were handled from a multidisciplinary perspective.