U.S. military opportunities: information-warfare concepts of operation

Information warfare is often seen as a new threat, a tool for adver-saries to use against the U. S. homeland or U. S. forces. Numerous stories about break-ins at Pentagon computers, disabled satellites, and downed phone networks have focused the attention of the pub-lic and the national security community on the need for information-warfare defense. The possibility that these new information-warfare tools could threaten America's ability to project power or to realize its national interests is real and deserves analytical attention and public awareness. However, information warfare creates more than just vulnerability, it may also mean many new opportunities for the U. S. military. New information-warfare tools and techniques hold the potential for the United States to achieve its national security objectives using cheaper, more-efficient, and less-lethal methods.