Dual-Use Information Technology: Research, Development and Governance

Dual-use of IT is relevant to many applications and technology areas: how can we prevent, control or manage the risk of misuse of IT? How can dual-use awareness and regulation help to mitigate the risks to peace and security on the national and international levels? As cyberspace has been declared a military domain, IT is increasingly important for civil and military infrastructures. How can researchers, developers and decision-makers make sure that IT is not misused to cause harm? This has been discussed as the dual-use problem for nuclear, biological and chemical technologies. This chapter introduces different dual-use concepts and illustrates by considering cryptography, intrusion software, and artificial intelligence how governance measures, including export control, are applied. Further, approaches of technology assessment, with a focus on the design process, are presented. The chapter also provides insight into the implementation of dual-use assessment guidelines at TU Darmstadt, the so-called Civil Clause.