Cyber programme

Central topics in the cyber programme

• Digital geopolitics, cyber power and states' military cyber capabilities

• Digital threats to international peace and security

• Digital influence operations

• Technological trends in a security policy perspective

• Norway in the cyber domain: strategies, distinctive features and case studies

The digital domain offers new possibilities as well as serious risk and vulnerabilities. Cyber operations and influence campaigns can undermine trust in the government, increase societal conflicts, weaken Norway's defence capabilities, and impact Norwegian sovereignty. Technology's impact on global strategic stability is persistent and constant. Its manifestations, however, are constantly changing and must be studied carefully.

Today, the Internet has developed into a test lab for daring intelligence operations, with information campaigns, industrial espionage, surveillance, and network intrusion. But the impact of Big Data and artificial intelligence is nascent. Proportionality, impact measurement and approved measures remain unclear. Personal data can become an important national resource and simultaneously a security challenge. Commercial technology, the Internet of Things, new storage and processing capacities, and sophisticated artificial intelligence may change how we view and use the digital domain. But if and how it plays out remains to be seen.

With the Cyber Programme, the Norwegian Defence University College and the IFS’ Centre for International Security want to contribute to a scientific foundation for debates both in academia and in the public domain. The programme will work at the intersection between global and national security.