Small and Unthreatening: The Case for Increased Cyber Operations

Small and Unthreatening: The Case for Increased Cyber Operations

Authored by:
Tom Johansmeyer, PhD
Published: 8/17/2026
Digital Only

In Small and Unthreatening: The Case for Increased Offensive Cyber Operations, Tom Johansmeyer, PhD dismantles the fear of uncontrollable cyber collateral damage through an empirical analysis of Yaha, WannaCry, and NotPetya. Demonstrating that the financial fallout from these major incidents was far more limited and reversible than traditionally feared, Johansmeyer argues that offensive cyber tools offer a precise, de-escalatory alternative to kinetic force—and calls on military leaders to embrace these capabilities for modern statecraft.