Cybersecurity and Brazil

Brazil’s engagement with cyber norms does not occur in a vacuum. Rather, it unfolds within the context of four key themes that have traditionally shaped Brazilian foreign policy: the aspiration for global leadership, the desire to preserve but reform the international order, a commitment to and engagement with international law and norms, and what I call bridge-building in international affairs. After 2016, however, domestic turbulence led to a break with these traditions. I show how these themes can be seen in Brazil’s engagement with cyber norms. The second essential context for Brazil’s role in the global cyber norms debate is the domestic perception of cyber threats and the development of Brazil’s national cybersecurity policy. Brazilian policymakers initially focused on concept development, influenced by the cyberwar debate in the United States. Subsequently, they became attuned to the physical impact of cyber operations on critical infrastructure as they prepared for the mega-events that Brazil hosted between 2012 and 2016. After Edward Snowden’s revelations about US surveillance practices, they became focused on cyber espionage. Finally, the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff in 2016 and the ensuing political turmoil in the country focused policymakers’ attention on the potential of cyber operations to undermine trust.