1. How Ukraine is winning the social media war (BBC News)
After almost eight months, the war in Ukraine hangs in the balance. Ukrainian counter-offensives continue to make progress, while Russian forces are still pressing elsewhere. But on the internet, it’s a very one-sided affair.
Jakub Kalensky of the European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats (Hybrid CoE), a Helsinki think tank established by the European Union and NATO, says allowing worst-case fears of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions to steer responses to the invasion of Ukraine would be a mistake.
4. The data privacy deal driving the future of the US-EU commercial relationship (Atlantic Council)
the Biden administration issued an executive order to codify changes to privacy rules for transatlantic data transfers from the European Union (EU). A long-awaited announcement, the executive order is the next step toward establishing a new EU-US Data Privacy Framework (DPF), which will secure the free flow of personal data and thus underpins the US-EU commercial relationship.
5. The road not taken: why digital diplomacy must broaden its horizons (Article by Ilan Manor)
To date, scholars have only investigated how societal norms reshape diplomacy. The War in Ukraine demonstrates the need to examine how diplomats’ use of digital technologies may reshape societies. In this article, I examine two new, digital practices adopted by Ukraine during the War. By analyzing these practices, I try to reflect on how these may impact the norms and values of digital societies. This article takes the road not taken by digital diplomacy scholars while demonstrating the importance of broadening digital diplomacy’s horizons and examining the reciprocal relationship between diplomacy and society.
Iran has invested significant resources and accumulated vast experience in the conduct of digital influence efforts. These clandestine propaganda efforts have been used to complement Iranian foreign policy operations for the better part of a decade. Nonetheless, Iranian influence capabilities have gone largely unstudied by the United States, and only came to widespread attention in August 2018 with the first public identification of an Iranian propaganda network. Following the US assassination of Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani and a sharp escalation in US-Iranian tensions, it is important to understand the perspective, methods, and intent of Iranian influence efforts.
7. Social Media’s Impacts on Conflict And Democracy: The Techtonic Shift (Book by Lisa Schirch)
Join us for a panel discussion on Social Media Impacts on Conflict and Democracy: The Techtonic Shift, a new book that analyzes this dynamic and presents overlooked research from the Global South. Hear insights from the book’s contributors, who will illustrate the dramatic impact social media technology is having on social and political dynamics around the world as they share examples and case studies from India, Venezuela, and beyond.
8. Analysis: Why Iranian protesters are embracing Anonymous (By Simin Kargar; DFRLab)
The decentralized hacker movement has vowed to free the people of Iran, mirroring chants of protesters on the street
In our November monthly seminar, we welcome Dr. Bilyana Lilly, Director of Security Intelligence & Geostrategy at Krebs Stamos. She will present her new book Russian Information Warfare: Assault on Democracies in the Cyber Wild West. This seminar will be held online on Zoom. You can register here.
This first annual academic conference of The Hague Program on International Cyber Security continues the tradition of the annual conferences of The Hague Program for Cyber Norms. We aim to give a stage to all papers that have an interesting take on the theme of navigating narratives, addressing international crisis, conflict, and the politics of cyberspace.