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Dialectical Versus Empirical Thinking: Ten Key Elements of the Russian Understanding of Information Operations
WARNING! The views expressed in FMSO publications and reports are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of the Department of the Army, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government. Dialectical Versus Empirical Thinking: Ten Key Elements of the Russian Understanding of Information Operations CALL Publication #98-21 by Mr. Thimothy L. Thomas Foreign Military Studies Office, Fort Leavenworth, KS. This article was previously published in The Journal of Slavic Military Studies, Vol. 11, No 1 (March 1998), pp. 40-62. and Conflict Studies Research Centre, RMA Sandhurst, England, July 1997, Report AA29 Introduction Finding similarities in the Russian and U.S. approaches to information operations (IO) is not a difficult task. Both countries' specialists closely study electronic warfare and command and control systems of other countries, and both stress the importance of the use of computers and information management in the preparation and conduct of modern combat operations. This includes the use of information to conduct psychological operations (PSYOP). Upon closer examination, however, the Russian approach to the information warfare (IW) aspect of IO has several elements that makes it unique and different. There are three principal reasons for the distinct Russian method. First, there is the issue of overall context. The Russian state, economy, and society are in a transition period resulting in institutional and philosophical instability. Russian mass consciousness, according to many prominent scientists and government officials, is vulnerable to manipulation by slick marketing campaigns and to exploitation by promises of economic and social prosperity during this transition period. -
Russia's Foreign Policy Change and Continuity in National Identity
Russia’s Foreign Policy Russia’s Foreign Policy Change and Continuity in National Identity Second Edition Andrei P. Tsygankov ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK Published by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom Copyright © 2010 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Tsygankov, Andrei P., 1964- Russia's foreign policy : change and continuity in national identity / Andrei P. Tsygankov. -- 2nd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-7425-6752-8 (cloth : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-0-7425-6753-5 (paper : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-0-7425-6754-2 (electronic) 1. Russia (Federation)--Foreign relations. 2. Soviet Union--Foreign relations. 3. Great powers. 4. Russia (Federation)--Foreign relations--Western countries. 5. Western countries--Foreign relations--Russia (Federation) 6. Nationalism--Russia (Federation) 7. Social change--Russia (Federation) I. Title. DK510.764.T785 2010 327.47--dc22 2009049396 ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Printed in the United States of America It is the eternal dispute between those who imagine the world to suit their policy, and those who arrange their policy to suit the realities of the world. -
Inside Russia's Intelligence Agencies
EUROPEAN COUNCIL ON FOREIGN BRIEF POLICY RELATIONS ecfr.eu PUTIN’S HYDRA: INSIDE RUSSIA’S INTELLIGENCE SERVICES Mark Galeotti For his birthday in 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin was treated to an exhibition of faux Greek friezes showing SUMMARY him in the guise of Hercules. In one, he was slaying the • Russia’s intelligence agencies are engaged in an “hydra of sanctions”.1 active and aggressive campaign in support of the Kremlin’s wider geopolitical agenda. The image of the hydra – a voracious and vicious multi- headed beast, guided by a single mind, and which grows • As well as espionage, Moscow’s “special services” new heads as soon as one is lopped off – crops up frequently conduct active measures aimed at subverting in discussions of Russia’s intelligence and security services. and destabilising European governments, Murdered dissident Alexander Litvinenko and his co-author operations in support of Russian economic Yuri Felshtinsky wrote of the way “the old KGB, like some interests, and attacks on political enemies. multi-headed hydra, split into four new structures” after 1991.2 More recently, a British counterintelligence officer • Moscow has developed an array of overlapping described Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) as and competitive security and spy services. The a hydra because of the way that, for every plot foiled or aim is to encourage risk-taking and multiple operative expelled, more quickly appear. sources, but it also leads to turf wars and a tendency to play to Kremlin prejudices. The West finds itself in a new “hot peace” in which many consider Russia not just as an irritant or challenge, but • While much useful intelligence is collected, as an outright threat. -
The Siloviki in Russian Politics
The Siloviki in Russian Politics Andrei Soldatov and Michael Rochlitz Who holds power and makes political decisions in contemporary Russia? A brief survey of available literature in any well-stocked bookshop in the US or Europe will quickly lead one to the answer: Putin and the “siloviki” (see e.g. LeVine 2009; Soldatov and Borogan 2010; Harding 2011; Felshtinsky and Pribylovsky 2012; Lucas 2012, 2014 or Dawisha 2014). Sila in Russian means force, and the siloviki are the members of Russia’s so called “force ministries”—those state agencies that are authorized to use violence to respond to threats to national security. These armed agents are often portrayed—by journalists and scholars alike—as Russia’s true rulers. A conventional wisdom has emerged about their rise to dominance, which goes roughly as follows. After taking office in 2000, Putin reconsolidated the security services and then gradually placed his former associates from the KGB and FSB in key positions across the country (Petrov 2002; Kryshtanovskaya and White 2003, 2009). Over the years, this group managed to disable almost all competing sources of power and control. United by a common identity, a shared worldview, and a deep personal loyalty to Putin, the siloviki constitute a cohesive corporation, which has entrenched itself at the heart of Russian politics. Accountable to no one but the president himself, they are the driving force behind increasingly authoritarian policies at home (Illarionov 2009; Roxburgh 2013; Kasparov 2015), an aggressive foreign policy (Lucas 2014), and high levels of state predation and corruption (Dawisha 2014). While this interpretation contains elements of truth, we argue that it provides only a partial and sometimes misleading and exaggerated picture of the siloviki’s actual role. -
How the Kremlin Weaponizes Information, Culture and Money by Peter Pomerantsev and Michael Weiss
The Menace of Unreality: How the Kremlin Weaponizes Information, Culture and Money by Peter Pomerantsev and Michael Weiss A Special Report presented by The Interpreter, a project of the Institute of Modern Russia imrussia.org interpretermag.com The Institute of Modern Russia (IMR) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy organization—a think tank based in New York. IMR’s mission is to foster democratic and economic development in Russia through research, advocacy, public events, and grant-making. We are committed to strengthening respect for human rights, the rule of law, and civil society in Russia. Our goal is to promote a principles- based approach to US-Russia relations and Russia’s integration into the community of democracies. The Interpreter is a daily online journal dedicated primarily to translating media from the Russian press and blogosphere into English and reporting on events inside Russia and in countries directly impacted by Russia’s foreign policy. Conceived as a kind of “Inopressa in reverse,” The Interpreter aspires to dismantle the language barrier that separates journalists, Russia analysts, policymakers, diplomats and interested laymen in the English-speaking world from the debates, scandals, intrigues and political developments taking place in the Russian Federation. CONTENTS Introductions ...................................................................... 4 Executive Summary ........................................................... 6 Background ........................................................................ -
State of Utah Federal Funds Commission Economic Risk Analysis
State of Utah Federal Funds Commission Economic Risk Analysis Prepared by: Kevin D. Freeman, CFA Freeman Global Holdings, LLC January 2016 Copyright © 2016 Freeman Global Holdings, LLC The Utah Federal Funds Commission retains a non-exclusive but unrestricted and perpetual right to the use and ownership of this RISK ANALYSIS as outlined in the contract with Freeman Global Holdings, LLC ECONOMIC RISK ANALYSIS 3 Freeman Global Holdings, LLC THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY BLANK ECONOMIC RISK ANALYSIS 1 Freeman Global Holdings, LLC PURPOSE The purpose of this effort was described as Risk Analysis in the contract and legislative language. Risk Analysis means an economic risk analysis that: a) Identifies the most likely and substantial risk that could cause the state of Utah to experience a reduction in the amount or value of federal funds it receives; b) Assesses, for each identified risk, the probability that the risk will actually occur; c) Assesses the direct and indirect impacts to the state of Utah, given the occurrence of each identified risk, including the amount or value of the reduction in the federal funds to the state; and d) Identifies and recommends methods that state can employ to avoid, minimize, and monitor the impacts of each identified risk. Please note that we have categorized risks by type and provided a subjective estimate of probability. The list is compiled based on judgment rather than modeling or other methods. This effort is not intended to be predictive as none of the risks identified may come to fruition. The purpose is, however, to identify potentially catastrophic risks and describe potential impacts with a cursory review of possible mitigation opportunities. -
Organized Crime and the Russian State Challenges to U.S.-Russian Cooperation
Organized Crime and the Russian State Challenges to U.S.-Russian Cooperation J. MICHAEL WALLER "They write I'm the mafia's godfather. It was Vladimir Ilich Lenin who was the real organizer of the mafia and who set up the criminal state." -Otari Kvantrishvili, Moscow organized crime leader.l "Criminals Nave already conquered the heights of the state-with the chief of the KGB as head of a mafia group." -Former KGB Maj. Gen. Oleg Kalugin.2 Introduction As the United States and Russia launch a Great Crusade against organized crime, questions emerge not only about the nature of joint cooperation, but about the nature of organized crime itself. In addition to narcotics trafficking, financial fraud and racketecring, Russian organized crime poses an even greater danger: the theft and t:rafficking of weapons of mass destruction. To date, most of the discussion of organized crime based in Russia and other former Soviet republics has emphasized the need to combat conven- tional-style gangsters and high-tech terrorists. These forms of criminals are a pressing danger in and of themselves, but the problem is far more profound. Organized crime-and the rarnpant corruption that helps it flourish-presents a threat not only to the security of reforms in Russia, but to the United States as well. The need for cooperation is real. The question is, Who is there in Russia that the United States can find as an effective partner? "Superpower of Crime" One of the greatest mistakes the West can make in working with former Soviet republics to fight organized crime is to fall into the trap of mirror- imaging. -
The Blogization of Journalism
DMITRY YAGODIN The Blogization of Journalism How blogs politicize media and social space in Russia ACADEMIC DISSERTATION To be presented, with the permission of the Board of School of Communication, Media and Theatre of the University of Tampere, for public discussion in the Lecture Room Linna K 103, Kalevantie 5, Tampere, on May 17th, 2014, at 12 o’clock. UNIVERSITY OF TAMPERE DMITRY YAGODIN The Blogization of Journalism How blogs politicize media and social space in Russia Acta Universitatis Tamperensis 1934 Tampere University Press Tampere 2014 ACADEMIC DISSERTATION University of Tampere School of Communication, Media and Theatre Finland Copyright ©2014 Tampere University Press and the author Cover design by Mikko Reinikka Distributor: [email protected] http://granum.uta.fi Acta Universitatis Tamperensis 1934 Acta Electronica Universitatis Tamperensis 1418 ISBN 978-951-44-9450-5 (print) ISBN 978-951-44-9451-2 (pdf) ISSN-L 1455-1616 ISSN 1456-954X ISSN 1455-1616 http://tampub.uta.fi Suomen Yliopistopaino Oy – Juvenes Print 441 729 Tampere 2014 Painotuote Preface I owe many thanks to you who made this work possible. I am grateful to you for making it worthwhile. It is hard to name you all, or rather it is impossible. By reading this, you certainly belong to those to whom I radiate my gratitude. Thank you all for your attention and critique, for a friendly talk and timely empathy. My special thanks to my teachers. To Ruslan Bekurov, my master’s thesis advisor at the university in Saint-Petersburg, who encouraged me to pursue the doctoral degree abroad. To Kaarle Nordenstreng, my local “fixer” and a brilliant mentor, who helped me with my first steps at the University of Tampere. -
Hacks, Leaks and Disruptions | Russian Cyber Strategies
CHAILLOT PAPER Nº 148 — October 2018 Hacks, leaks and disruptions Russian cyber strategies EDITED BY Nicu Popescu and Stanislav Secrieru WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM Siim Alatalu, Irina Borogan, Elena Chernenko, Sven Herpig, Oscar Jonsson, Xymena Kurowska, Jarno Limnell, Patryk Pawlak, Piret Pernik, Thomas Reinhold, Anatoly Reshetnikov, Andrei Soldatov and Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer Chaillot Papers HACKS, LEAKS AND DISRUPTIONS RUSSIAN CYBER STRATEGIES Edited by Nicu Popescu and Stanislav Secrieru CHAILLOT PAPERS October 2018 148 Disclaimer The views expressed in this Chaillot Paper are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Institute or of the European Union. European Union Institute for Security Studies Paris Director: Gustav Lindstrom © EU Institute for Security Studies, 2018. Reproduction is authorised, provided prior permission is sought from the Institute and the source is acknowledged, save where otherwise stated. Contents Executive summary 5 Introduction: Russia’s cyber prowess – where, how and what for? 9 Nicu Popescu and Stanislav Secrieru Russia’s cyber posture Russia’s approach to cyber: the best defence is a good offence 15 1 Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan Russia’s trolling complex at home and abroad 25 2 Xymena Kurowska and Anatoly Reshetnikov Spotting the bear: credible attribution and Russian 3 operations in cyberspace 33 Sven Herpig and Thomas Reinhold Russia’s cyber diplomacy 43 4 Elena Chernenko Case studies of Russian cyberattacks The early days of cyberattacks: 5 the cases of Estonia, -
Analisis Y Diagnostico De La Seguridad Informatica De Indeportes Boyaca
ANALISIS Y DIAGNOSTICO DE LA SEGURIDAD INFORMATICA DE INDEPORTES BOYACA ANA MARIA RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO 53070244 UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL ABIERTA Y A DISTANCIA “UNAD” ESPECIALIZACION EN SEGURIDAD INFORMATICA TUNJA 2014 ANALISIS Y DIAGNOSTICO DE LA SEGURIDAD INFORMATICA DE INDEPORTES BOYACA ANA MARIA RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO 53070244 Trabajo de grado como requisito para optar el título de Especialista En Seguridad informática Ingeniero SERGIO CONTRERAS Director de Proyecto UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL ABIERTA Y A DISTANCIA UNAD ESPECIALIZACION EN SEGURIDAD INFORMATICA TUNJA 2014 _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ Firma del presidente del jurado _____________________________________ Firma del jurado _____________________________________ Firma del jurado Tunja, 06 de Octubre de 2014. DEDICATORIA El presente trabajo es dedicado en primera instancia a Dios quien día a día bendice mi profesión y me ayuda con cada uno de los retos que se me presentan a lo largo del camino de mi vida. A mi fiel compañero, amigo, cómplice y esposo, quien es la ayuda idónea diaria y mi fortaleza constante para seguir en el camino del conocimiento, quien no deja que me rinda y me apoya incondicionalmente para que día a día logre ser mejor persona. A mis familiares y compañeros de trabajo, por todo su amor, confianza y apoyo incondicional, a nuestros compañeros y profesores gracias por la amistad, la comprensión, los conocimientos y dedicación a lo largo de todo este camino recorrido que empieza a dar indudablemente los primeros frutos que celebramos. AGRADECIMIENTOS La vida está llena de metas y retos, que por lo general van de la mano con grandes sacrificios, por eso hoy podemos decir que gracias a Dios y nuestras familias esta meta se ha cumplido y seguramente vendrá muchas metas que harán parte de nuestro gran triunfo personal como familiar. -
Twitter Taken Down by Ddos Attack August 2009
the Availability Digest www.availabilitydigest.com Twitter Taken Down by DDoS Attack August 2009 On Thursday, August 6, 2009, the Twitter social networking site went down. It suffered repeated outages, timeouts, and serious slowdowns for at least two days. What caused this failure? To add to the mystery, Facebook and LiveJournal simultaneously had similar problems. Were these outages somehow related? They occurred at about the same time as the 2009 Defcon 17 hackers conference held from July 30th to August 2nd. Could this have been some misguided mischief? But first, what is Twitter? For those who haven’t yet become addicted, Twitter is a microblogging social networking site that allows users to communicate what they are doing to their “followers” at any time via 140-character text messages, or “tweets.” Twitter was born in 2006 and has exploded in use. It currently has about five-million registered users, and an estimated 45 million people follow these users via their tweets. Twitter sprung into the mainstream when Republican presidential candidate John McCain joined the 21st century technology by embracing tweeting following the 2008 U.S. presidential election. Even more recently, and perhaps more importantly, Twitter was the primary communication mechanism to the rest of the world from those Iranians participating in the major rallies decrying the recent Iranian presidential election process. The untimely death of Michael Jackson also saw a massive increase in tweet volume. The Twitter Outage Access to Twitter Lost Twitter has not been known for its availability record. Pingdom, a web-site monitoring service,1 reports that Twitter was down for 84 hours in 2008, achieving only a 99% uptime.2 It should be noted, however, that Twitter is working hard to improve this record; and its uptime improved significantly in the second half of 2008. -
[Evillar] Tesis Doctoral
Campus Universitario Dpto. de Teoría de la Señal y Comunicaciones Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona, Km. 36.6 28805 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid) Telf: +34 91 885 88 99 Fax: +34 91 885 66 99 DR. D. SANCHO SALCEDO SANZ, Profesor Titular de Universidad del Área de Conocimiento de Teoría de la Señal y Comunicaciones de la Universidad de Alcalá, y y DR. D. JAVIER DEL SER LORENTE, Director Tecnológico del Área OPTIMA (Optimización, Modelización y Analítica de Datos) de la Fundación TECNALIA RESEARCH & INNOVATION, CERTIFICAN Que la tesis “Advanced Machine Learning Techniques and Meta-Heuristic Optimization for the Detection of Masquerading Attacks in Social Networks”, presentada por Esther Villar Ro- dríguez y realizada en el Departamento de Teoría de la Señal y Comunicaciones bajo nuestra dirección, reúne méritos suficientes para optar al grado de Doctor, por lo que puede procederse a su depósito y lectura. Alcalá de Henares, Octubre 2015. Fdo.: Dr. D. Sancho Salcedo Sanz Fdo.: Dr. D. Javier Del Ser Lorente Campus Universitario Dpto. de Teoría de la Señal y Comunicaciones Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona, Km. 36.6 28805 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid) Telf: +34 91 885 88 99 Fax: +34 91 885 66 99 Esther Villar Rodríguez ha realizado en el Departamento de Teoría de la Señal y Comunica- ciones y bajo la dirección del Dr. D. Sancho Salcedo Sanz y del Dr. D. Javier Del Ser Lorente, la tesis doctoral titulada “Advanced Machine Learning Techniques and Meta-Heuristic Optimiza- tion for the Detection of Masquerading Attacks in Social Networks”, cumpliéndose todos los requisitos para la tramitación que conduce a su posterior lectura.