AI Disinformation Drives New National Security Strategies

(NewsUSA) - Threats to global stability continue to evolve to include greater use of artificial intelligence (AI) to promote disinformation, according to experts at the Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP), a nonprofit and nonpartisan initiative with a mission of making recommendations to strengthen America's long-term competitiveness in AI.

The need for NATO member countries to keep hostile regimes from using AI disinformation to manipulate public opinion is becoming increasingly important.

This “cognitive warfare” or information warfare, is not a new concept, but the digital revolution and use of AI allows bad actors to disseminate deepfakes and AI-augmented content at a previously unfathomable speed.

SCSP experts offer several strategies for how NATO countries can confront the threat of AI-augmented disinformation head-on. “This requires moving beyond the current reactive approach, which focuses on debunking falsehoods,” according to SCSP.

-Monitor disinformation in real-time. Investing in open-source intelligence tools and working with tech companies can help develop the expertise to identify and counter malevolent disinformation campaigns. Also, better authenticity tools are needed to identify altered or AI-generated content.

-Discredit disinformation immediately. NATO must proactively promote its own interests and mission. NATO should provide its own positive narrative to get out ahead of disinformation, and highlight failures of authoritarian regimes, especially on their own digital platforms.

-Initiate partnerships. Establishing and strengthening collaborative relationships with governments, private companies, and civil-society organizations can help NATO develop early warning systems and coordinate stronger and faster responses to disinformation campaigns.

-Foster healthy skepticism. Supporting programs to promote media and digital literacy can help reduce the impact of disinformation. Educating the public to apply critical thinking skills to online information can help build societal resilience against propaganda and voter manipulation.

To achieve these goals, SCSP experts recommend the creation of a disinformation unit within NATO responsible for coordinating intelligence, spearheading counter-messaging efforts, and building strategic partnerships. “Such a unit could leverage the Five Eyes intelligence alliance (the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada), as well as the work of Europol – the European Union’s law-enforcement agency – to bolster and expand information-sharing networks,” according to SCSP.

Visit scsp.ai for more information about the importance of strengthening America’s competitiveness as AI and other emerging technologies are reshaping our national security, economy, and society.