How technology is changing the battlefield
Sky鈥檚 defence and security editor Deborah Haynes is hosting a panel on cyber warfare.
As you would expect, the war in Ukraine is a focus of this panel.
Sarah Armstrong-Smith, chief security adviser at Microsoft, says the Ukraine war is an example of a modern hybrid war, with traditional forms of combat complemented by cyber attacks and information warfare.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e targeting the Ukrainian population, the Russian population, Western allies, allies of Russia - there鈥檚 a whole disinformation campaign,鈥� she says.
Nigel Inkster, former director of operations at MI6, says cyber plays an important role - but that it is part of a 鈥済rey zone鈥� that precedes actual armed conflict.
鈥淩ussia鈥檚 decided that rather than take out infrastructure using cyber means, it鈥檚 easier just to physically destroy it,鈥� he adds.
But he stresses that Ukraine has also showed the importance of good air defence systems, which depend on satellites and AI to function effectively.
As for what war looks like in the future, he says its 鈥渃haracter鈥� is what will change more than its nature.
鈥淐yber attacks are probably going to be ancillary to the main event which is a clash of arms,鈥� he says.
We are 鈥渁 long way from killer robots鈥�, he adds, reassuringly.
鈥淯krainian forces have defeated a much larger and on the face of it better prepared force through the skill of individual commanders on the ground and I don鈥檛 think we鈥檒l ever be able to eliminate that from a central role in conflict.鈥�
George DubinAG百家乐在线官网, Ukraine鈥檚 deputy digital transformation minister, joined the panel virtually.
He describes the war in Ukraine as 鈥渢he first online war鈥�, such is the positive and negative role social media has played - from exposing what has been happening in the country, but also dangerous disinformation campaigns.
鈥淲e are actively using cyber technologies in the current warfare, particularly to counter Russian disinformation,鈥� he says.
The Ukrainians are also using AI to identity the social profiles of dead Russian soldiers, he said.
Sally Walker, former cyber director at GCHQ, describes cyber as a 鈥渉uman challenge鈥� that requires competence across society.
鈥淭he debate is about who we trust, what we trust and how we trust it,鈥� she says.
Every citizen has a role to play in countering cyber warfare.
鈥淚鈥檝e got a phone here, we鈥檝e all got a phone here - it鈥檚 under attack,鈥� she says.
鈥淚t鈥檚 getting spam emails trying to steal my credentials and information and I鈥檓 the one probably responsible, because I logged on to a station Wi-Fi on my way here and didn鈥檛 think if it was a trusted network.
鈥淲ithin seconds I was getting spam text messages about COVID and energy support payments. The system is out there and we play into it. Even if our device is secure, our behaviour is not.鈥�