collateral damage

Noun

collateral damage (usually uncountable, plural collateral damages)

1. (euphemistic, usually) Damage to civilian property or civilian casualties that is the unintended result of military operations.
   • A certain amount of collateral damage and destruction to the surrounding environment has always been viewed as a necessary but generally undesirable by-product of military conflict.1999, Dennis L. Soden, The Environmental Presidency, →ISBN, page 237
   • But the most critical tension concerns the need to balance minimal own-casualties and low collateral damage with operational effectiveness.2004, Alice Hills, Future War in Cities: Rethinking a Liberal Dilemma, →ISBN, page 197
2. (usually) Harm to innocent people that results from policy decisions.
   • What is missing from this line of reasoning, however, is a frank assessment of the collateral damage caused by supply-side efforts and whether this harm outweighs the unproven positive impact of current programs, which is likely to be marginal at best.2005, Coletta Youngers, Eileen Rosin, Drugs and Democracy in Latin America: The Impact of U.S. Policy, →ISBN, page 339
   • Neoliberals readily admit that economic liberalization causes some dislocations, but they view such collateral damage as necessary for the longer term gains of increased productivity and efficiency.2009, David J. Hess, Localist Movements in a Global Economy, →ISBN, page 25
3. (usually) Unintended victims of an attack targeted at someone or something else.
   • The versatility and specificity of PDT regards dosing and delivery may provide a far superior treatment and management of infection than antibiotics and minimize the risk of developing resistance as well as collateral damage to host bacteria.2008, Michael R. Hamblin, Advances in Photodynamic Therapy, →ISBN, page 294
   • The possibility of false claims exists with kinetic attacks as well, but claims about collateral damage from a cyberattack are likely to be even more difficult to refute.2009, Herbert S. Lin, Kenneth W. Dam, William A. Owens, Technology, Policy, Law, and Ethics Regarding U.S. Acquisition and use of Cyberattack Capabilities, →ISBN, page 264