Cyberwar and Information Warfare

Conclusion ¹

As we come to the end of this reflective work, we offer our readers a summary of the major themes, principles and questions which run through these 7 chapters. Our analysis, centered on the themes of information warfare and cyberwar, has allowed us to put forward a few main ideas. The distinction between classic war and modern war (in the sense of “cyber” or “technological”), is not entirely relevant. Strategic laws, however, remain relevant, even if the ways of applying force are evolving.

Thus, the role of the “strategy” in the information realm is confirmed as being a key aspect. Strategy is the only component which can give a meaning to the actions we take, and to give the operations force. In the absence of a strategy, attacks only have limited impact because they are non-exploitable. It is not enough, then, to have cursors ready to be sent to action (individuals mastering technology, targets to be aimed at), or a cyberarsenal (viruses, intrusion methods, concealment). Moreover, we must fix more superior objectives, include them in a comprehensive political system, and finally, write scenarios which can reach the objectives defined by the strategies. Therefore, in order to understand the current cyberattacks (the real ones, and the ones we invent), it is fundamentally important to focus on the strategy construction which may guide them, whilst avoiding focusing on the information that started the incident itself.

If strategy maintains its first place position, ...