The Future of Cyber-Enabled Influence Operations: Emergent Technologies, Disinformation, and the Destruction of Democracy
Date
2022
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Springer
Abstract
Nation-states have been embracing online influence campaigns through disinformation at breakneck speeds. Countries such as China and Russia have completely revamped their military doctrine to information-first platforms [1, 2] (Mattis, Peter. (2018). China’s Three Warfare's in Perspective. War on the Rocks. Special Series: Ministry of Truth. https://warontherocks.com/2018/01/chinas-three-warfares-perspective/, Cunningham, C. (2020). A Russian Federation Information Warfare Primer. Then Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies. Washington University. https://jsis.washington.edu/news/a-russian-federation-information-war fare-primer/.) to compete with the United States and the West. The Chinese principle of “Three Warfare's” and Russian Hybrid Warfare have been used and tested across the spectrum of operations ranging from competition to active conflict. With the COVID19 pandemic limiting most means of face-to-face interpersonal communication, many other nations have transitioned to online tools to influence audiences both domestically and abroad [3] (Strick, B. (2020). COVID-19 Disinformation: Attempted Influence in Disguise. Australian Strategic Policy Institute. International Cyber Policy Center. https://www.aspi.org.au/report/covid-19-disinformation.) to create favorable environments for their geopolitical goals and national objectives. This chapter focuses on the landscape that allows nations like China and Russia to attack democratic institutions and discourse within the United States, the strategies and tactics employed in these campaigns, and the emergent technologies that will enable these nations to gain an advantage with key populations within their spheres of influence or to create a disadvantage to their competitors within their spheres of influence. Advancements in machine learning through generative adversarial networks [4] (Creswell, A; White, T; Dumoulin, V; Arulkumaran, K; Sengupta, B; Bharath, A. (2017) Generative Adversarial Networks: An Overview. IEE-SPM. April 2017. https://arxiv.org/pdf/1710.07035.pdf.) that create deepfakes [5] (Whit-taker, L; Letheren, K; Mulcahy, R. (2021).
Description
item.page.type
Books, book chapters
item.page.format
Keywords
Cyber Warfare, COVID-19, Disinformation
Citation
Littell, Joseph, "The Future of Cyber-Enabled Influence Operations: Emergent Technologies, Disinformation, and the Destruction of Democracy" (2022).