By Franck Cécile, Cybersecurity Expert
Today, the "Grande muette" (nickname given to the French army) remains as little known and misunderstood as cybersecurity in general. While most of our fellow citizens and politicians don't deny that it serves a certain purpose, they don't really know or understand how it works or why it's important, thinking of it as something obscure and distant that doesn't really matter to them. In reality, "defense" and "cybersecurity" have a much more direct impact on our lives than it might seem.
In this report, we will take a look at what defense is, what activities it encompasses, and who is involved in it. We will then do the same with cybersecurity, before making the connection between these two worlds. Finally, we will take a closer look at how they impact each other.
NB: This article is not intended to cover all the operations carried out by our armed forces, nor to go into the technical details or history of cyberattacks, but rather to enable novices to understand how they are directly affected by both defense and cybersecurity, and what the key issues are.
The Defense
What is Defense?
Let's start with the factual definitions: for a country, defense is the set of means and actions implemented to guarantee the security and integrity of its territory and population. By metonymy, defense also refers to the set of organizations made up of civilians and military personnel who are responsible for this mission (this is referred to as national defense).
I won't go into detail about the (many) players in the defense system, but it's important to keep in mind that a significant portion of the population contributes to it, directly or indirectly, sometimes without even really knowing it. Defense encompasses all national players whose activities are considered vital to the state, whether they are military, civilian, public, private, etc. This therefore includes (for the most part) Operators of Vital Importance (OVIs): organizations identified by the State as having activities that are essential to the survival of the nation, in various fields (health, food, energy, transport, finance, telecommunications, etc.). These organizations are required to implement Information Systems of Vital Importance (SIIV) hosting Sensitive Information (Restricted Distribution) or Classified Defense Information (Secret, Top Secret since July 1, 2021, formerly CD/SD/Top Secret Defense). In fact, this information, these systems, and these activities play a role that is considered essential in the context of national defense.
Add to this the taxes paid by taxpayers, which are used to finance these industries, both civil and military, and you will understand that national defense is not provided exclusively by our armed forces; it is everyone's business.
What is the purpose of defense: strategic functions
The national defense and security strategy is now defined by five major strategic functions, which we will briefly examine.
Prevent - Know & Anticipate
Probably the most discreet and least visible functions. However, they are essential, as information management is vital for dealing with any type of threat.
In " The Art of War , " Sun Tzu said 2,500 years ago, "All success in an operation lies in its preparation ."
Knowing who you are up against is just as important as knowing yourself. This is particularly true in a military context, but not only there. Our armed forces are therefore equipping themselves with the means to detect the emergence of new tensions as early as possible and to prevent crises in many parts of the world. These crises do not necessarily lead to conventional "wars."
This includes terrorism, piracy, and global warming. In the same vein, the Navy regularly deploys resources in the far north to improve its knowledge of the area, which has become a real strategic issue in the fight against global warming. We must also bear in mind that, however distant they may be, crises can ultimately have a direct impact on us here at home. Prevention is better than cure.
Protect
Probably the best-known strategic function, and paradoxically, the one whose scope is least understood. While it seems clear that defending the national territory (on land or in the air) is one of the main purposes of our armed forces, their scope of action is much broader.
France has 11 million square kilometers of EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone), representing 8% of the world's seas, making it thesecond largest maritime territory after the United States in terms of surface area.
In addition to its relief efforts (COVID-19 in mainland France and overseas territories, warehouse explosion in Beirut, Hurricane Irma in the Caribbean, etc.), the Navy plays a major role in pollution control. Whenever necessary, it provides assistance and rescue to ships and people in distress at sea, and continuously carries out police actions at sea (fisheries policing, combating illicit trafficking, neutralizing explosive devices; on average, around 3,000 mines, shells, and munitions are neutralized each year). The Air and Space Force monitors and protects our airspace, and the Army provides support in emergencies or when civilian resources are insufficient, in cases of serious crisis (natural disasters, large-scale technological accidents, terrorist acts, health crises, etc.).
Intervene
The intervention takes the form of:
- Power projection (notably through the naval air group centered on the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, but also through the army, air force, and space forces)
- The projection of force (amphibious, land, or air) across various theaters of operations
This capacity for intervention gives France the strategic ability to mitigate and resolve conflicts that may impact it directly or indirectly, whether on its territory or elsewhere.
Deter
For most civilians, the term "deterrence" does not mean much. For the military, it is the opposite. Deterrence is the term given to the doctrine of nuclear weapons use.
As soon as nuclear weapons are mentioned, public opinion panics. Many fear that the bomb will be used offensively or irrationally. Combined with the unpredictability of certain leaders, a large-scale nuclear conflict remains a widespread fear. For Western civilizations, the lasting peace that has settled over our territories, as well as new forms of conflict, suggest that nuclear weapons have become inappropriate and useless.
However, when we look at the doctrine of deterrence from a defense perspective, the point of view is radically different. It is important to understand this doctrine and keep in mind that it is solely defensive in nature. It can be summarized as follows:
"Hold me back by holding yourself back, otherwise something bad will happen and you will be responsible for it! Given my current state of mind, which I am explaining to you, only your restraint or your refusal is likely to prevent me from acting on my impulses."
In other words, nuclear weapons give a nation the ability to define clear and precise red lines that constitute the limits of our sovereignty, which cannot be crossed; the costs of such an action far exceed its benefits. If this were to happen, it would be the invader who would bear the responsibility for the nuclear fire raining down on them. "The line is there, you must not cross it, if you cross it, you know what will happen to you, and you will be solely to blame." The ultimate outcome of the Doctrine of Deterrence would, in a sense, be its failure. At least the failure of diplomacy: it is the guarantor of negotiations and peace. Since no one wants nuclear weapons to be used, everything must be done peacefully to prevent this from happening.
While nuclear weapons are terrifying, and there are an increasing number of people who support their dismantling, it is nevertheless widely accepted that nuclear deterrence has played a major role in preserving peace in the West in recent decades.
Why is defense necessary?
Format and evolution of our armed forces
It is important to note that France is one of the few countries with a comprehensive (i.e., capable of doing everything) and coherent (in terms of its objectives and missions) military model. This model is still considered today to be a prerequisite for French strategic autonomy. It is therefore one of the best guarantees of our ability to decide our future independently and freely, in complete autonomy. Since the end of the Cold War, our armed forces have been hit hard by budget constraints and cuts, having to adapt while maintaining their objectives and missions, always at the lowest possible cost. For several years now, the trend has been reversing again, with the terrorist threat contributing to a certain awareness. It should also be noted that the format of our armed forces takes into account the capabilities of our allies (EU, NATO, etc.) to fill our "gaps" and vice versa.
War and Peace
While our armed forces enjoy high popularity ratings among the population today, it must be noted that a large proportion of our fellow citizens often confine their role to dramatic and explosive armed conflicts. While Hollywood and video games (among other things) have greatly contributed to spreading an exaggerated view of war, it must be acknowledged that the vast majority of the population is largely unaware of the essential role played by our military, and of the ongoing war that is being waged on land, in the air, on and under the seas.
Images of epic battles between two fiercely opposed sides come to mind more easily than the spying on submarine cables used to transmit internet communications:
All too often, armies are still seen as serving only to spread death and destruction, to wage war, and to win it at a high price. The lives of civilians are often considered to be that high price. I think it is important to bear in mind that armies are not there to win wars; they are there to win peace, sustainably (otherwise we would be talking about armed/private militias). The actions that our armies carry out on a daily basis (made possible by the entire defense industry), however invisible they may be, have the ultimate goal of guaranteeing this stability and lasting peace.
Mastery of the Force as the best guarantee against rising violence
Although very discreet in everyday life, defense, and more specifically the armed forces, are nevertheless omnipresent, as I explained above: protecting and securing people and civilian infrastructure, intervening in and managing emerging crises in unstable countries, fighting terrorism, gathering intelligence of all kinds, providing logistical support during health crises or natural disasters, nuclear deterrence, etc. One need only take a cursory look to realize that our armed forces are always ready to act as needed, in the interests of the population and civilians in general.
The Army, through its missions, operations, and strategic functions, strives to be extremely efficient. First, by equipping itself with the means to know. To know the enemy and the threat, of course. But also
to know the environment in which it operates, whether social, political, or the space in which it evolves (land, sea, air, space, and more recently... cyberspace). Finally, to better confront threats, it is necessary to know oneself.
Know your strengths and operational capabilities, clearly identify the desired outcome, the strategy for achieving it, and the set of tactics to be implemented to reach your goal. Nothing is left to chance. Everything is studied, measured, prepared, and considered so that you are never caught off guard and are always able to respond appropriately.
Finally, the army wants to be strong. Its strength comes from its equipment, its tools, its resources, and its weapons, of course. But above all, it draws its strength from its men and women, from the organization and order it has established, and from their training. It also draws its strength from its knowledge (intelligence...), its preparation (training), and sometimes from activities that go far beyond the military world (technological research...). In short, there is really no room for uncertainty, doubt, anger, violence, or uncontrolled, unplanned emotional reactions. Only strength and control.
" Strength drives violence back. "
General Pierre De Villiers, former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces
We can easily summarize by stating that the primary purpose of our Armed Forces is Force Mastery, with the sole aim of guaranteeing the security and integrity of the territory, its population, its sovereignty, and, de facto, its Freedom. Finally, let us not forget that beyond this single aspect of "Force Mastery," there are also a large number of activities carried out behind the scenes (intelligence, technological research, politics, alliances, finance, etc.) that make it possible to carry out these missions requiring a high level of expertise. All these elements are an integral part of the nation's defense strategy.
