A Critical Analysis of the Existing Legal Frameworks Governing Artificial Intelligence in Cyber Warfare

Master's Thesis from the year 2025 in the subject Law - Public Law / Miscellaneous, grade: B, , course: MASTER OF LAW, language: English, abstract: This dissertation critically examines the existing legal frameworks governing Artificial Intelligence (AI) in cyber warfare and evaluates whether current domestic and international laws are capable of addressing the legal, ethical, and humanitarian challenges arising from AI-enabled cyber operations. The study explains how AI has transformed modern warfare through autonomous systems capable of surveillance, target identification, data analysis, and cyber attacks with minimal human intervention, thereby creating serious concerns relating to accountability, privacy, civilian protection, state responsibility, and constitutional rights. It analyzes the Indian legal framework including Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution of India, the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with international humanitarian law principles such as distinction, proportionality, precaution, and military necessity under the Geneva Conventions, Hague Conventions, and the Tallinn Manual. The research further examines judicial precedents including K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India and Shreya Singhal v. Union of India to highlight the protection of digital and constitutional rights. Using a doctrinal and analytical research methodology, the dissertation identifies significant gaps in existing legal systems regarding attribution, command responsibility, autonomous weapons systems, and AI accountability, and concludes that stronger international regulation, transparent governance, meaningful human control, and coordinated legal reforms are necessary to balance technological advancement with humanitarian and constitutional safeguards.