What Can We Say About Cyberwar Based on Cybernetics? (p. 154 - 168)
Sakari Ahvenainen mpkk.academia.edu
“What Can We Say About Cyberwar Based on Cybernetics?” article examines the basics of cyberwar, mostly cybernetics. It also deals with cyberspace as a new global infrastructure and cyberwar as a global level of warfare. The focus of the article is
Cybernetics: Theory of General Information Influence? - Information, Computers and Humans as an Essence of Postmodern Warfare Sakari Ahvenainen National Defence University sakari.ahvenainen@kolumbus.fi Key words: cybernetics, information theory, computers, humans, postmodern warfare, information actors, theory, influence, cyberwar Have you ever heard of (Russian) psychotronic warfare? This article presents an analytical model of cyberwar. One of its outcomes is a systematic classification in which psychotronic warfare is a part of 20 logical and holistic types of cyberwar. Thus in this article we will present a systematic, scientific, holistic and balanced model to understanding information based postmodern warfare and society. Today this model or theory is as important as thermodynamics was in the 19th century. This theory, as a working hypothesis is cybernetics. It has two principal information actors, humans and computers. They are in the core of postmodern warfare and society. With some add-ons we have basic tools to systematically study cyberwar. Warfare is a very complex social activity and so it is missing good predicting theories. Since the WW II, contemporary warfare has been dominated by information and complexity on especially doctrinal level. First this was seen in Command, Control and Communication Counter-Measuress (C3CM), then in Information Warfare (IW) and Information Operations (IO), then in Network-Centric Warfare (NCW), Effect-Based Operations (EBO), Operational Design (OD) and chaoplexic warfare, combination of chaos and complexity. Surprisingly, there is still no information theory that has been more widely accepted and used to study warfare, not at least in the West. For our information age we need a science dealing with information. In a time of this kind of major change we live now, there is a real possibility to miss the essence of the change and so endanger for example the future of one’s nation or its ranking among other nations. This is especially true, because a change of this kind is often emergent and hard to predict by observing the level where it is forming. Similarly, earlier, in the industrialization starting in the 18th century a new science was necessary. The “engine” of this change was the steam engine and for it a completely new science, thermo-dynamics was needed. Accordingly, the engine of our time is the computer and its science, as a working hypothesis, cybernetics. We approached our research problem by making a hypothesis and testing it. Our problem was to investigate if there is a scientific theory to study and to understand the complex, networked and global postmodern warfare. To select our hypothesis, we had some preliminary notices and intuitions, even some previous articles as a pre-knowledge dealing with some aspects of this problem. Our working hypothesis, basically trial and error, was that this theory able to deal with postmodern warfare is cybernetics, the theory of complex systems using goals, controls and information. To test our hypothesis, we studied the basic elements of cybernetic systems and compared them with warfare and if it had too these cybernetic parts, structure and dynamics. The main observation of our study was: Cybernetics is a less used and understood theory in warfare, although for example John Boyd’s famous OODA-loop (Observation - Orientation – Decision and Actions) is a pure and very principled cybernetic model, but not often discussed as a such. Cybernetics has been developed in the last decades in management, social sciences, philosophy and organization theory. There is even a new kind of general post-Wiener mathematical cybernetic theory, theory of enformatics (energic information). Cybernetics is not death, and not just a mathematical control theory of contemporary technological sciences. Further on, we noticed that warfare is a cybernetic process in every one of its levels: combat techniques, tactics, operational art, strategy and grand strategy at coalition level. Warfare is a complex phenomenon and has goals, controls and information processing. These cybernetic part of warfare are for example sensors (intelligence, recognition and surveillance), decision making units (commanders and staffs) and effectors (task executing subunits, artillery, air support, electronic warfare units, information warfare units, …). Also humans and computers have these same cybernetic parts. We find out that computer should be considered also as a research tool to rule the complexity of postmodern global warfare and global society, not just a tool to automate systems and things. Cyborgs, as an integration of humans and computers are also as a prediction, parts of this era. Further on, there is a second cyberspace inside human brains, beside the generally known cyberspace of computers, for example internet. There are three levels of cybernetic information influence on humans and computers: (1) setup value or goal (mind!), (2) models of reality or interpretative information and (3) signals or input and output information. This observation on three levels is potentially a base for Psychological Operations, mind control? Maybe the most interesting observation was that our model generates systematically 20 (2 * 2 * 5) different cyberwar types. The first division is by types of dimension or domains; concrete physical atomic world or abstract cybernetic information world, 2 possibilities. The second division is by actors; humans or computers, 2 possibilities. The last division is by targets; human or computer information, their physical cybernetic parts or their common environment, including non-cybernetic part of humans and computers, 5 possibilities. One of this types of cyberwar is the Russian psychotronic warfare, use of computers against human computer operator. Simulation happens also in human minds, not just in computers and is for example basic element of mental training to perfect athletics for better performance. Implication of our research is that we live in an era of information, which means mainly two information actors, humans and computers. Cybernetics is a working hypothesis of a science for our information age. Cyberneticly mind is the setup value, the highest part of human cybernetic information as a target of warfare. Internet is the new global source and battlefield of information in our age and globally important in fighting for the minds and hearts. The combination of humans and computers is important, as the cyborg – notion suggests. Computer is the tool to unveil the secrets of the complexity of our time and to rule the highest human organization that is forming, the global mankind. We have to move for good from modern and parts (mass society and mass or attrition warfare) to the postmodern and whole (precision or information warfare). Part of this transition is the increased targeting of human mind, decision makers and people as a core target of postmodern warfare. This suggest doctrine like strategic communication. Information is the new domain, present in many (every?) military application, but nothing old will disappear for good as for example atoms are necessary to form the physical structures of cybernetic systems, like humans and computers. Cybernetics is, according to our analyses, a theory of postmodern warfare and society. For future research we suggest that we should take also in the West a deeper and a new look for cybernetics and warfare as a cybernetic process, even to promote it as the main candidate of science of our age. It is already a candidate for a new main discipline in philosophy as for example Luciano Floridi’s work suggest. This concerns especially complex systems, which are the real challenge of our age.