Cognitive wars operate in the psychological mind to overthrow perceptions, opinion and decision-making processes

With information being both an asset and a weapon in today’s day and age, cognitive warfare has become the next front of global wars. Unlike conventional wars, in which the use of physical force is applied, cognitive wars operate in the psychological mind to overthrow perceptions, opinion and decision-making processes. This type of warfare utilises psychological operations, disinformation campaigns, using social media to manipulate it, and artificial intelligence to shape some kinds of narratives and influence certain populations. From man’s frontline, the battlefield itself, (it) is no longer just land, air, or sea. It is the human psyche, and cognitive warfare is invisible yet a potent tool in the tug of war between nations now is waged in the minds of men.

Cognitive Warfare is a tactic employed by governments, nonstate actors and, in some cases, corporations to take the strategic advantage

In essence, cognitive warfare is an attempt to break an adversary’s cognitive abilities so that one no longer rationally and critically analyses and makes high quality decisions. All this is achieved, in some cases, with such sophisticated tactics as propaganda, fake news, and algorithmic manipulation meant to sow confusion, fear, and division. Cognitive Warfare is a tactic employed by governments, nonstate actors and, in some cases, corporations to take the strategic advantage, influence the public opinion, and break an enemy from within. This is effective because the subtlety of the approach means that victims do not realize that their brains are being manipulated until it is too late.

As such, cognitive warfare has historical roots in the more traditional propaganda initiatives during war. But that has exponentially exploded in the digital age. During World War II, radio broadcasts, posters and leaflets were used by governments for their messages. Psychological operations in the Cold War were made more sophisticated by the television and print media. Currently, never has there been such an ability to spread targeted disinformation everywhere in the world in seconds using the tools of the internet and social media. Artificial intelligence and big data analytics lead to further increase of precision and for effectiveness of cognitive warfare tactics.

In the military sphere, adversaries use psychological operations to reduce the morale of enemy troops, deceive military commanders and undermine strategic planning

The cognitive warfare is not limited to the political domain, and it also works in economic and military domains. In the business environment, corporate organizations carry out cognitive warfare in the form of aggressive marketing techniques, reputation management and misinformation attacks on other competing entities. With Cyber Enabled Economic Warfare, it is possible to spread rumours to manipulate stock prices or write bogus product reviews that harm a brand’s reputation. However, in the military sphere, adversaries use psychological operations to reduce the morale of enemy troops, deceive military commanders and undermine strategic planning.

The problem with cognitive warfare, particularly at the level of society, is that it causes societal cohesion. In polarized societies the myth, the misinformation, the way the psychological manipulation aggravates the divisions, and creates social unrest weakens national resilience. There are false narratives about health crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic, especially how cognitive warfare can create doubt and confusion and destroy people’s public trust in science and institutions. Extremist groups employ cognitive warfare to indoctrinate people by taking advantage of grievances and distributing ideological propaganda as well.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning have also furthered the advancement of cognitive warfare into a more adverse threat. It can create realistic deepfakes and is capable of making convincing fake news articles or personalize disinformation campaigns towards the specific demographic. And to some extent, social media platforms, because of their algorithms encourage engagement, also participate in cognitive warfare, amplifying sensational and polarized content, and consequently amplifying the probability of such incidents. Societies are vulnerable to cognitive attacks to the extent that the distinction between truth and falsehood has never been more difficult.

Governments and organizations across the world are starting to take note of the value of cognitive warfare and countering it. There are programs to inculcate media literacy, public awareness campaigns, fact checking initiatives among others to strengthen immunity against disinformation. The fight against cognitive warfare has spurred some countries to create special units within their defence and intelligence agencies to monitor such threats. However, the nature of warfare is evolving fast, and so there is a greater need for development and innovation of countermeasures on the part of the allied forces.

Countering cognitive warfare comes at the cost of ethical implications, as steps to counter disinformation should not abridge free speech and civil liberties

Cognitive warfare also is just as reliant on cybersecurity. Cyber tools are not only used to hack, cyber criminals, and proliferate disinformation and state sponsored actors utilize them to ramp up disinformation, conduct psychological operation, tamper with online discourse. To safeguard our societies from cognitive attacks, we must strengthen digital security, apply additional restrictive regime to social media, and promote international cooperation. Countering cognitive warfare comes at the cost of ethical implications, as steps to counter disinformation should not abridge free speech and civil liberties.

Tactics of cognitive warfare will become more sophisticated as technology keeps becoming more advanced. The more connected each of us becomes around the world, the higher the risk of cognitive warfare bubbling up into full psychological conflicts. Representatives from the policy, tech and citizen realms must join hands to design strong defenses against this proliferating threat.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author. They do not represent the views, beliefs, or policies of the Stratheia.