The 2016 election has been the center of much debate and controversy since the, now President Trump, decided to run for office. As the election went on, so did speculations about his Russian ties within the office. Many would say that the Russians conducted information/influence operations against the United States. What are these operations and how do they work?
Information, or influence operations, are the assemblage of strategic information to have an advantage over an enemy. It “include(s) the collection of tactical information about an adversary as well as the dissemination of propaganda in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent” (Information).
To perform these operations or be a part of these, according to Air University, employed individuals need “…core capabilities of electronic warfare, computer network operations, psychological operations, military deception and operations security, in concert with specified supporting and related capabilities, to influence, disrupt, corrupt or usurp adversarial human and automated decision making while protecting our own (What are). You should be knowledgeable in these specifics if you want to be a part of operations like these, as well as know what’s going on within the country.
What does this have to do with Russia and the U.S. though? These operations have been going on for many years, over the course of wars and behind the scenes, even without the proper name attached. In the past couple of months, congress has been trying to look at the communications division of Trump’s campaign with Russia, among others in office, to find certified ties with the country. This evidence will aid in knowing what happened with the 2016 election; if Trump really did win within the states or is it Russia’s doing?
Reports have been coming in that reveal that Russia ‘hacked’ with the election. Trump says otherwise. He “…he keeps insisting there are no hidden ties between him and Russia, and that the entire Russia investigation is a major witch hunt” (Smith). How do they come up with these speculations? “The US government publicly announced in October that it was “confident” Russia orchestrated the hacking of the Democratic National Committee and other political organizations of the Democratic Party” (Diamond).
Although, Trump has not “…counter(ed) the CIA claims, other than to insist it is a political effort aimed at delegitimizing his electoral victory – also without evidence” (Diamond) Makes everyone wonder what’s really going on, and how these operations seem to be working, especially within the election.
How do these operations work? They can work in numerous ways. Through monitoring social media, spying, having leverage on political figures, and through propaganda. It relies on information and communication. You just need the right people doing them and shoveling out the information in a way to obstruct the opponent.
It’s also terrible to assume the worst in these situations because you can’t believe everything you see or read. Especially about this topic on Trump and Russia. There’s a lot of hate out there on these two, so anyone will put up anything on the internet to persuade someone into believing a side. Always look for a non-bias source, if possible.
To conclude, information/influence operations have always existed. They are ways to get the correct information to have advantage over an enemy, in which can aid them in warfare or retaliation over the other. These operations have, somehow, existed with the 2016 election, but no hard evidence has come about. Perhaps, we will see what happens in the coming months as more reports emerge.
References
Diamond, J. (2016, December 16). Russian hacking and 2016 election, explained. Retrieved May 22, 2017, from http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/12/politics/russian-hack-donald-trump-2016-election/index.html
“Information Operations.” RAND Corporation. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 May 2017. http://www.rand.org/topics/information-operations.html.
Smith, C. (2017, May 18). Russian hacking has got even worse since the election. Retrieved May 22, 2017, from http://bgr.com/2017/05/18/russia-hacking-after-trump-election/
What are Information Operations? (n.d.). Retrieved May 22, 2017, from http://www.au.af.mil/info-ops/what.htm
