Legislation as an instrument of cognitive warfare

Although subduing the opponent’s will has been the pinnacle of warfare since Sun Tzu, the existing notion of cognitive warfare has gained traction with the possibility of influencing the opponent directly via cyberspace and social media. Influence operations via cyberspace entail swaying public opinion, manipulative psychological warfare, and lawfare. The use of law as an instrument of power to affect perception and cognition is possible because of ongoing legal disputes about how to apply (international) law to cyberspace. States can cherry-pick or even assertively exploit variations in interpretations of international law to pursue or defend their national interests as a means of cognitive warfare.