Knowra Information warfare Information warfare Information warfare uses or disrupts information, communication systems, and perceptions to gain advantage over an adversary in conflict. It combines technical operations with efforts to influence what people know and believe.
Psychological warfare : The use of communication and other actions to influence an adversary’s emotions, beliefs, or behavior during conflict. It targets perceptions directly, one of information warfare’s central mechanisms.
Disinformation : False or misleading information deliberately spread to deceive or manipulate an audience. It can weaken trust, confuse public debate, or influence decisions during conflict.
Sun Tzu : An ancient Chinese military strategist traditionally credited with writing The Art of War. His emphasis on deception is an enduring precursor to information-based strategy.
Conventional warfare : Armed conflict fought primarily with conventional forces and weapons rather than nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons. Information operations can support conventional battles but also pursue effects without direct combat.
Cognitive warfare : The deliberate effort to influence how individuals and groups perceive, reason, and make decisions. It names the human cognitive effects that information campaigns seek to produce.
Cyberwarfare : Conflict involving cyber operations intended to disrupt, damage, or exploit an adversary’s digital systems. It applies information warfare to digital networks and computer systems.
Propaganda : Communication designed to promote a cause or influence the attitudes and actions of an audience. States use it to build support, undermine opponents, and frame events.
Committee on Public Information : A U.S. government agency established in 1917 to build public support for participation in World War I. Its coordinated messaging made mass persuasion a formal instrument of wartime policy.
Information operations : The coordinated use of information-related capabilities to influence, disrupt, or protect decision-making. Military doctrine often treats these as organized activities within a broader operational plan.
Critical infrastructure : The systems and assets essential to a society’s security, economy, public health, and safety. Cyber disruption can affect essential services and turn digital attacks into public crises.
Show all 27