Western World Order in the Crosshairs? A Theoretical Review and Application of the Russian 'Information Weapon'

摘要

Could you envision a weapon that would make the adversary destroy itself without even recognizing it was under attack? This paper highlights the importance of understanding the theoretical and contextual background of Russian cyber and information campaigns. We ask what the purpose of the Russian information and cyber campaigns is. How is the Russian 'information weapon' functioning? What is actually targeted? In this paper, we focus on a theoretical concept 'information weapon' by Professor Sergei Pavlovich Rastorguev (1958-2017). Our aim is to show how an existing theory is adequate for explaining contemporary Russian cyber and information campaigns. Moreover, our aim is to demonstrate how the theoretical framework of a 'Russian information weapon' could be applied in practice. Russian 'information weapon' can be used against a specific state or society. However, we argue that it is designed to threaten the entire 'Western world order'. We illustrate two potential future information and cyberspace scenarios where the 'information weapon' envisioned by Rastorguev could destroy the free Internet and Western democracy and lead to the so-called 'Post-Western world order'. This paper stresses the importance of comprehending the Russian way of thinking both on a theoretical and a conceptual level when making information and cyber security decisions or deciding on responsive actions.