This week, after a 3-year research period, NATO STO’s multi-national Research Task Group SAS-117 – Information Operations for Influence published its Technical Report entitled, Emerging Threats in the Information Environment (IE), in which they provide case studies of various aspects that characterize the current information space as well as emerging technological and strategic challenges.
The team, led by Canada, brought together experts from Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI), University of Tartu, Tallinn University of Technology, Ministry of Defence Estonia, Royal Military College of Canada, Marshall University, Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), and Defence Research and Development Canada.
Although NATO has achieved, on the whole, technical overmatch in the areas of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and the employment of precision munitions and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in non-permissive and denied areas against NSAs and irregular forces, they have nevertheless faced substantial challenges in achieving asymmetric advantage in the IE. In addition, NATO has been slow to embrace and exploit the broad range of opportunities to engage in influence and informational warfare.
In their report, the SAS-117 team identified and examined emergent threats in the information environment as well as issues related to adversary exploitation of the information environment. It also focused on the employment of non-linear/hybrid warfare in the information environment as well as on identifying and discussing the knowledge and capability gaps required to counter adversary asymmetric advantage in this domain.
The report is available (password protected) from the NATO STO website. Please contact the SAS Panel Executive (sas@cso.nato.int) if you want more information on this activity.
