CSS. CORNER Issues CYBER WARFARE Cyber warfare is the premeditated, politically motivated attacks against information, computer ‘systems, computer programmes and data which result in violence against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents. The possibilities created for cyber terrorism by the use of technology via the internet are vast. Government computer networks, financial networks, power plants, etc are all possible targets as terrorism may identify these as the,mostappropriate features to corrupt or disarm in order to cause havoc. Manipulation of systems via software with secret "back doors’, theft of classified files, erasing data, re-writing web pages, introduding viruses, etc are just a few examples of how terrorism can penetrate secure system, : e Ss In contemporary world, governments play as the political instrument ey ‘ofiexcising control and gaining the mandate of people. These objectives arebachieved by usingdeffective law enforcement and by providing a secure, secular and democrati¢lenvi lament tospeople to attain control and mandate over them. The law enforcement and’security sites extensively on criminal records and other coordination networks suchas é nse and recovery networks which although act as a force multiplier for, thembut at tig same time make them vulnerable to strategic cyber warfare. Another important aspect to gain mandate and control of people is the media. Media is an important tool that frames the perception and psychologi¢al framéotmind of the population. Media around the world is extensively interlinked through networks which not only makes information to disseminate easily but also make media more susceptible to strategic cyber warfare. These Media networks can be hijacked for tarnishing the image of politicians and the government of a victim nation and can be used to induce fear and chaos among people, Psy-ops can be fully employed on these hijacked medianetworks to tarnish the political stance of the victim nation at national and’ international levels, thus initiating conflicts both at inter-nation level (by routing an attack through a victim nation). and intra-nation level (by inducing political divisions in the population by false propaganda résulting in conflicts and total law and order failure), hence creating the symptoms ofa failed state Which has anarchy, fear and chaos, resulting in a humanitarian crisis and ire of the state. x The last\couple of decades have seen a colossal change in terms of the influence that computers have on'the battle field, toan extent that defence pundits claim it to be a dawn of a new era in warfare. The use of computers and information in defence has manifested into various force multipliers stich as Information Operations, C4I2SR Systems, Network Centric Warfare, to the extent that commentators are terming this information age as a Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA). These advances have not only revolutionized the way in which wars are fought but have also initiated a new battle for the control of a new dimension in the current contemporary world: The Cyber Space Over time cyber warfare has assumed the shape of an elephant assessed by a group of blind people, with every one drawing different meanings based upon their perceptions. Under these circumstances there was a gradual paradigm shift in military thinking and strategies, from the strategic aspect to the tactical aspect of cyber warfare laying more emphasis on cyber attacks and counter measures. This has resulted in the formation of a notion that cyber warfare or information, warfare is a potent force multiplier, which in a sense downgraded the strategic aspects of cyber wartoa low grade tactical warfare used primarily for a force enhancement effect. form of warfare and, rather than cyber war merely being an enhancement of traditional ope traditional operations will be force multipliers of cyber war The destructive potential of a relatively new technological threat, cyber warfare is very high. Cyber- warfare is a form of information warfare; it is the use of the internet and related technologies by governments to damage or disrupt the activities or systems of an adversary or a private entity of value to an adversary. A related term, cyber-terrorism, refers to the use of cyber-warfare techniques by groups or individuals operating independently of national governments. A number of states, including Israel, the United States, Iran, and China have indicated that they have active cyber-warfare programmes. Intelligence analysts believe that Iran's cybet=warfare was behind a string of attacks in 2012 that disabled the websites of numerous QQ) operations of the Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco. US and Israeli operatives developed a computer virus name éted against Iran's nuclear enrichment facility at Natanz. Stuxnet damaged I internet when an Iranian nuclear technician inadvertently transferre ‘s nuclear facility to the internet through his personal computer Experts ee a lel between a Weapon of mass destruction n and cyber warfare. The mostipotentwea ass destruction, ‘and used by one government without a full appreciation of their implications, igh the destructive potential may differ, governments developing cyber-warfare may be heading down a similar path, creating Weapons that could possibly destroy stock’marketsand banking systems, flood dams, and poison water supplies. The extent to which cyber-warfare arms faces take place and whether the international community will seek to control or ban their use remain to be seen.