RISE participates in research project on psychological defence

New geopolitical challenges have increased the threat level regarding, for example, offensive cyber and foreign influence as well as the use of, for example, disinformation from irregular actors. By mapping the motivations behind and the methodology used in antagonistic activities, we can draw relevant lessons. However, it is also necessary to include the context of the nations that are exposed and examine the structures and experiences that they have made to protect their society, as well as perspectives from international organisations such as NATO and the EU.

"It is important to identify factors that improve the understanding of the methodology used by antagonistic actors from multiple perspectives, how they work, what they try to exploit and can influence, but also highlight successful measures and combined capabilities that other democratic countries have developed." So says Björn Palmertz, Acting Director of Centre for Cyber Security at RISE, who is part of the project's research team.

Ultimately, the project will result in a toolkit and recommendations that can be used to strengthen the resilience of societal actors to meet hybrid threats, such as influence operations combined with other means of action such as intelligence gathering and cyber attacks.

The project runs until 2025 and is coordinated by the Swedish Defence University, with funding from the Swedish Agency for Psychological Defence. Other participating parties are RISE, the Swedish Institute of International Affairs, the Danish  Academy of Defence and Ukrainian Prism.

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