Cyber Harm and Critical Infrastructure: How Far Does Responsibility Reach? A Geneva Dialogue Scenario-Based Session

15 October 2026 (Thursday)
Time: 3.00pm to 5.00pm (GMT +8)
Venue: SICW E (Level 3, Jasmine 3812 - 3913)

Format: Closed Door Event (By Invitation Only)

When a cyberattack causes cascading harm across critical infrastructure — crossing sectors, borders, and the state & non-state divide — the question of responsibility becomes as complex as the attack itself.

This session presents a tabletop exercise (TTX) developed under the 2026 Geneva Dialogue work programme on stress-testing cyber norms and cybersecurity frameworks under geopolitical and operational pressure. Participants — representing policymakers, operators, cybersecurity and cyber diplomacy experts, and technical community — work through a multi-sector, cross-border crisis scenario, making decisions under uncertainty, with incomplete information and a narrowing window for action.

The scenario surfaces questions that remain genuinely open: what obligations apply when harm crosses jurisdictions, who holds authority to act when the response window is shorter than the time needed for verification, and where state responsibility ends and operator responsibility begins.

The Geneva Dialogue on Responsible Behaviour in Cyberspace is an international initiative launched by the Swiss Government and led by DiploFoundation. Governments have agreed on rules for responsible state behaviour in cyberspace, but there is no shared understanding of how to apply them in a real crisis. The Geneva Dialogue brings together a multistakeholder community to work through real-world scenarios and turn these rules into practical guidance.

Findings will contribute to the third chapter of the Geneva Manual on Responsible Behaviour in Cyberspace.

Information is accurate at time of publication