In this video we briefly explain some basic stuff about cyber warfare. The online world is no peaceful escape from real world tensions.
It usually reflects or in some cases even sparks tensions in physical reality. Cyber warfare can take various forms ranging from hacking to information war on social media to online espionage.
Often cyber conflicts go hand in hand with real life ones. The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine was also preceded by a swarm of cyberattacks against Ukraine.
While cyberspace once had the potential to become a global village free from geopolitical tensions, this idea is now very far from the truth. Indeed, the online space has its trenches and barbed wires. They are just made from ones and zeroes rather than steel. And cyberspace usually reflects or corresponds to real world tensions. In this video, we will explain some basic stuff about cyberwarfare. It’s an especially relevant topic in the context of the ongoing Russian attack on Ukraine.
So what exactly is cyber warfare? Well, it’s a broad term encompassing everything from digitally supported military operations against nation-states to political hacktivism promoting certain agendas, raising awareness, or even taking down governments. Cyber warfare has many forms. Hacking, hacktivism, espionage, misinformation, and propaganda campaigns on social media and other forms of cybercrime fall under this umbrella.
The aim is usually to cause substantial damage to a target. Attackers either try to disrupt the target’s online systems, to spy on someone, or to snatch sensitive data that later can be used against an adversary. But often, cyber attackers cause real world consequences too.
For example, the disruption of the Colonial Pipeline activities resulted in fuel shortage in the USA, while attacks on hospitals can even cause deaths. Furthermore, cases of hackers disrupting the electricity grids of certain countries have caused power outages. People also employ cyber warfare measures for political and social activism.
One of the most recent examples of such hacktivism is the Anonymous group, currently targeting Russian media to battle Russian propaganda. Cyber warfare usually goes hand in hand with regular warfare or, in some cases, precedes it. The most recent example we face is the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Even before Russian troops swarmed across the border, Ukraine experienced continued assaults from hackers. Attacks took down Ukrainian governmental websites and new forms of malware flooded the country, targeting firewalls and wiping data.
However, next to Ukraine’s cyber army defensive efforts, Anonymous also started a cyberwar against Russia after the invasion began. Russian media playing a key role in the Kremlin propaganda apparatus was their key target.
Battles also continue on social media, where people try to fight against propaganda in comment sections by providing counter-arguments to trolls, provocateurs, and people misguided by the Russian media.
So, as we can see, when it comes to nation states, cyber warfare is often inseparable from real world tensions.