Information Operations and Warfare Research Paper

Introduction

Information warfare or INFOWAR is a set of actions, tactics, and strategies that are aimed at gaining information advantage at a specific point in time.¹ In 21st-century warfare, it is critical to possess information about the enemy or deceive the enemy with inaccurate information in order to have a strategic advantage. Therefore, it is paramount to investigate the elements which constitute the essence of INFOWAR and what distinguishes it from conventional warfare.

Tactics

Nowadays, information warfare can precede or intercede actual conventional warfare. It can be used to gain an advantage both in the offense and defense. If usual combat presupposes direct physical elimination of a target, and information warfare uses permanent or temporary disruption of communication channels in a variety of settings such as mass media, logistics, military bases, or combat outposts. Apart from disruption, which serves as a tactic that creates a time window used for the organization and preparation of a physical attack or defense, there are other tactics such as interception or deception. Interception is used to gain valuable information about an enemy and use it against them. Deception is used to force an enemy into making false assumptions or attack wrong targets based on the inaccurate information that was placed into the enemy’s databases as a result of the deceptive activity.

Personnel

Among the personnel that partakes in the activities connected to INFOWAR, there is a variety of military and civil specialists. Most of them are trained to work with particular equipment such as personal computers, specific software, and hardware, radio-electronic devices, surveillance mechanisms, etc. As opposed to the personnel needed for conventional warfare, information one makes use of people who are not necessarily trained in the art of physical combat. Since the modern world utilizes a multitude of electronic devices to store information, successful information warfare requires skills and knowledge of retrieving, destroying, or replacing data on such devices. Typical agents of INFOWAR are civil and military programmers, military radio engineers, and various IT specialists.

Equipment

Equipment utilized to lead information warfare varies in types and purposes. One of the most usable in the middle or in the preparation stage of the combat is electronic jamming devices that disrupt enemy communication. As opposed to physical destruction preferred in conventional warfare, jamming devices are used to discretely disable communication and force enemy forces to seek the source of jamming, providing time for allies. Computers are also a powerful tool of information warfare. They are versatile and can be used to withdraw information, disrupt or corrupt information on other computers or databases, acquire control of surveillance, and perform many other operations.

Targets

Information warfare presupposes targeting sources and channels of information and people who use them. Through disruption of the first two, allies are able to influence the decisions of enemies, making them commit mistakes or paralyze their actions. Instead of physically eliminating the target, INFOWAR acts preemptively to gain an advantage for conventional warfare actions or prevent them in the first place.

Infowar Example

An example of information warfare is a prevention of a terrorist attack through the timely acquisition of information about a planned attack. A radio electronics specialist who intercepted a secret terrorist transmission about the location of a planned bombing and prevented it by providing this information to law enforcement.

Bibliography

Headquarters Department of the Army. “Training Circular No. 7-101.” PageBaldwin. 2018. Web.

Footnotes

1. Headquarters Department of the Army, “Training Circular No. 7-101,” PageBaldwin, 2018, Web.