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Information Warfare: Navigating the Art of Deception
- THE GEOSTRATA
- Mar 30
- 2 min read
“साम दाम दंड भेद” (saam daam dand bhed) is a Sanskrit phrase that means “the four ways of dealing with people."
It is a strategy of diplomacy and statecraft that the ancient Indian political thinker, Kautilya, or Chanakya, advocated. The phrase signifies four key pillars for achieving goals. These include persuasion (साम), economic enticement (दाम), the use of force or punishment (दंड), and creating differences or divisions (भेद). Modern-day warfare hasn't been much different than in the past, but it has evolved over the years from its conventional nature.
Cover by The Geostrata
Still rooted in its strategic wisdom, it involves the use of alternatives to sabotage the adversary internally, popularly known as Grey Zone tactics. In the contemporary landscape, where the battleground extends beyond physical conflicts and into the realm of information, strategic use of data and communication technologies plays a crucial role.
Information warfare refers to warfare where information and communication technologies are used to gain strategic advantages over the opponent. Such warfare is instrumental in the pursuit of strategic goals in this interconnected world, as it primarily focuses on planning and executing activities to convey selected information to shape perceptions, influence decisions, and achieve desired outcomes.
What makes these types of attacks lethal is that one cannot anticipate their incoming, and it can only be felt once it's been waged on, therefore making every front of the country a potential warfront under a single umbrella. Information, being itself an independent component, requires the jointness and interaction of multiple forces to launch military operations. It demands a concerted effort across cyber, psychological, and informational
domains to meet the desired outcomes.
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For all official and academic purposes, use the following as a citation, which follows the Chicago Manual Style.
Centre for Strategic Studies
“Information Warfare: Navigating the Art of Deception”
THE GEOSTRATA, March 30, 2025.
BY CENTRE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES
TEAM GEOSTRATA
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