Defence experts discussed emerging security challenges arising from the convergence of cyber operations, Artificial Intelligence (AI), information influence and human cognition at a seminar organised by Headquarters, Integrated Defence Staff (HQ IDS), in Delhi on Monday, an official said, IANS reported.

Source: IANS via HiIndia

The sessions on the opening day of the two-day seminar on “Cyber-Enabled Cognitive Warfare”, organised by the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies (CENJOWS) under the aegis of HQ IDS, focused on India's evolving threat landscape. Nation Press, reporting the same opening, said the deliberations centred on the rapidly evolving convergence of cyber operations, AI, information influence campaigns and human cognition as emerging frontiers of modern conflict.

Source: Nation Press

Who was in the room

The inaugural session was attended by Rear Admiral Sanjay Sachdeva, Director General, Defence Cyber Agency, Major General Ashok Kumar (Retd), Director General, CENJOWS, Shri Navin Kumar Singh, National Cyber Security Coordinator, Vice Admiral A.N. Pramod, Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff, and Air Marshal Tejinder Singh, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC), the official statement said.

The seminar brings together senior military leaders, government officials, strategic affairs experts, diplomats, representatives from academia, technology specialists and media representatives, providing a multidisciplinary platform for deliberations on the challenges and implications of cyber-enabled cognitive warfare.

2 daysDuration of the Cyber-Enabled Cognitive Warfare seminar, Nov 2–3
5Senior defence and security figures named at the inaugural session
4Converging fields under discussion: cyber, AI, information influence, cognition

Influence operations, and soldiers' families as targets

The sessions focused on the cyber-enabled cognitive battlefield and India's evolving threat landscape, and on the anatomy of influence operations, including the actors, vectors and narratives shaping the information environment, the statement said. The deliberations also addressed the targeting of military personnel, veterans and their families, alongside the growing convergence of cyber technologies, Artificial Intelligence and digital manipulation.

The discussions highlighted the need for a comprehensive understanding of emerging threats, extending beyond their technological dimensions to encompass their psychological, institutional and societal implications. The seminar continues for its second day on Tuesday.