Hybrid warfare is among the most trending topics. Hybrid threats arise in digital, cybernetic, and virtual environments and materialize in the real world. Although vague, hybrid activities include cyberwarfare, information warfare, and the emerging and evolving concept of cognitive warfare which appears from their intersection. These wordings gained popular attention in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian conflict and now are among the hot topics. While there is a lot of attention, there is also a lot of confusion about what exactly these locutions mean and what the implications are in branding them as “warfare”. Indeed, all such concepts are fluid, nebulous, and lack an undisputed legal definition. This work aims to clarify the legal meaning and to shed light on the characteristics – differences, similarities and overlaps – of these terms in the context of hybrid warfare and show the faulty reasoning upon which misunderstandings are based. The paper ends-up with a glimpse into the future, closing with a reflection on multi-domain operations facilitated by advancing virtual and augmented reality and a fully integrated human-computer interaction in the metaverse.

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hybrid,metaverse,information,disinformation,european union,russia,ukraine,fake news,censorship,propaganda,nato,eu,social media,misinformation,law of war,international humanitarian law,IHL,geneva conventions,warfare,war,conflict,armed conflict,internet,cyber,security,defence,defense

• Computer and Information Sciences - Natural Sciences
• Other Engineering and Technology Sciences - Engineering and Technology
• Psychology - Social Sciences
• Sociology - Social Sciences
• Law - Social Sciences
• Political Science - Social Sciences
• Media and Communications - Social Sciences
• Other Social Sciences - Social Sciences
• History and Archeology - Humanities
• Other Humanities - Humanities

This talk is associated with the following record:

• Guerre à la Carte: Cyber, Information, Cognitive Warfare and the Metaverse