INSTRUMENTAL CORRECTIONS FOR A DEFINITION OF CYBERWAR - Cyberwar-Netwar: Security in the Information Age - page 8

situation or one in which there are no clearly defined adversaries when friendly
forces have the information necessary to achieve operational objectives 3 .
x C yberattack: computer-to-computer attack that undermines the confidentiality,
integrity, or availability of a computer or information resident in it 14, 15 .
Let us analyze each of these definitions. The definition of IO is indisputable, as it is
invariant concerning any ICT changes, as well as the concepts of construction of systems
and networks.
However its invariability is its weakness, because it does not differentiate IO in
cyberspace from other military operations, and does not give us an opportunity to deepen
a level of detailing for making an instrumental specification of cyberwar.
The second definition is no more than a modification of the first one and has a shade of
purposefulness, directing us to a question, 'why do we carry out IO's? The third
definition is the most constructive because a terminology from the international standard
ISO 7498-2 is used. The requirement for instrumental corrections to the concept of
cyberwar will become more transparent in an aspect of asymmetric wars. This
phenomenon is connected with use of unorthodox methods and capabilities against an
information-dependent adversary that avoid or undercut an adversary's strengths while
inflicting disproportionate damage on the adversary's weakness 16 .
The definition of asymmetric war allows us to prove through reductio ad absurdum ,
that for the potential adversary it is not necessarily beneficial to create a modern
information infrastructure. Instead an easy victory can be achieved by using the 'off-the-
shelf' ICT and intellectually trained personnel. There is reason to believe that supporters
of asymmetric war were reasoning in approximately this direction. However this a priori
statement can be easily denied by figure 2, showing us that:
x To obtain 'off-the-shelf' ICTs and intellectually trained personnel, it is necessary
to have at least the rudiments of an innovation economy and a modern system of
education and training
x Conducting a cyberwar from territories of other States is a different problem,
which has found reflection in the conceptions of netwar and cyberterrorism
x The authors consider that it is possible to give the following definition for a
conception of cyberwar:
x Cyberwar is any form of offensive and defensive information operation in
cyberspace including HW/SW and communication for achievement of
information superiority and control interception within the adversary's
information infrastructure.
Warfare is the Way of deception… to subjugate the adversary's army without doing
battle is the highest of excellence. Sun Tzu.
4. INFORMATION SUPERIORITY AND CONTROL SUPERIORITY
We already have analyzed a concept of information superiority. A deliberate critic can
suspect us of an apology for cyberwar, for he can read between the lines. Now we present
more significant proofs to humanity of our understanding of cyberwar, because other
justifications of any wars do not exist at all. A concept of information interception will be
used for this purpose.
The problem of information interception is enough of an in-detail examined problem,
for example, in the ENFOPOL, where many technological components are attracted for