TECHNOLOGIES OF MANIPULATION AS AN ELEMENT OF INFORMATION WARFARE (ON THE BASIS OF MATERIALS FROM THE INTERNET)

Abstract

In terms of globalization, the role of state power institutions, the very state power, and the state defense system under the conditions of a military conflict are significantly transformed, and the fact of the existence of an information society exposes the state to the risk of an information war. Conducting information warfare in the context of military confrontation has always been an integral component of warfare. But it is the 21’st century that has seen that the importance of manipulative influence on the population has grown significantly, given the hybrid nature of modern wars, on the one hand, and the media’s use of the potential of the Internet, on the other one. Public opinion is one of the forms of mass (collective) consciousness that is formed spontaneously, but its formation can be influenced by manipulating consciousness. The information war, which the Russian Federation has been waging against Ukraine since 2014, has become more relevant since the beginning of the fullscale invasion of Russian troops on the territory of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. During the war of aggression, the Russian Federation uses a wide range of methods and technologies of psychological operations, which are a component of information warfare. In order to counteract the enemy’s psychological operations on our population, it is necessary to understand the essence of manipulative influence. This article is dedicated to the study of the main technologies and methods of modern information warfare, and as an illustration, practical examples of the main technologies of manipulation of the audience’s consciousness in the framework of the information war of the Russian Federation against the people of Ukraine are given, with the coverage of the tasks facing the manipulators and the analysis of the manipulation. In addition, the article analyzes the importance of social networks as a form of existence of the information society, and the use of social networks as a means of conducting information warfare. All examples are taken from open sources of the Internet, Telegram channels and social networks.