Cyberwar, Netwar and the Revolution in Military Affairs (part 1) [Hardcover]

Edward F. Halpin (Editor), Philippa Trevorrow (Editor), David Webb (Editor), Steve Wright (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1403987173 | ISBN-13: 978-1403987174 | Publication Date: September 4, 2006

The end of the Cold War, the Revolution in Military Affairs, 9/11 and the War on Terror have radically altered the nature of conflict and security in the twenty-first century. This book considers how developments in technology could and are effecting the prosecution of war and what the changing nature of warfare means for human rights and civil society.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

EDWARD F. HALPIN is Director of the Praxis Centre at Leeds Metropolitan University. He has researched human and child rights for many years, including work for the European Parliament Scientific and Technical Options Assessment (STOA) Unit. He co-edited the book Human Rights and the Internet (Palgrave Macmillan) and has published many articles in this subject area. In addition to working on social informatics within the School of Information Management, he is involved in teaching peace and conflict resolution in the School of Applied Global Ethics at Leeds Metropolitan University.

PHILIPPA TREVORROW is a graduate from the University of Exeter and works as a Research Officer in the School of Information Management at Leeds Metropolitan University. She has been involved with work in the Praxis Centre for the last 2 years, including issues on peace and conflict resolution, youth citizenship and E-government.

DAVID C. WEBB is Professor of Engineering Modelling, Head of the Centre for Applied Research in Engineering and Director of the Praxis Centre at Leeds Metropolitan University. He obtained a DPhil in Space Physics in 1975 from the University of York and, after periods as a post-doctoral researcher at Bell Laboratories and the University of York, joined the Directorate of Scientific and Technical Intelligence at the MoD in London in 1978. He moved to the Computer Unit at Leeds Metropolitan University in 1979 and then into the School of Engineering in the early 1980s. He has published widely on the application of engineering modelling and on nuclear disarmament and the militarization of space. He is currently working with colleagues in the Praxis Centre on the Study of Information and Technology in Peace, Conflict Resolution and Human Rights.

STEVE WRIGHT is a Visiting Professor at Leeds Metropolitan University, Chair of Privacy International and the former Director of the Omega Foundation. His recent EU research tracked the armourers of the torturers. Wright is best known for his European Parliamentary report highlighting the US global telecommunications interception network - Echelon.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (September 4, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1403987173
• ISBN-13: 978-1403987174
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,666,838 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars a new type of warfare, November 2, 2006

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W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Cyberwar, Netwar and the Revolution in Military Affairs (part 1) (Hardcover)

In one of the chapters, its author refers to the postmodern condition. While this sounds like something out of the latest literary theory, it is also an apt label for the book's topic. Namely, what is cyberwar and what are the new issues it raises? The book is not solely about software, you should note. One chapter harks back to the depths of the Cold War, discussing the US command and control policies regardings its nuclear weapons. Here, the fear has always been of a decapitation strike (coup de main). With case studies of when Reagan was shot in 1981 and the terrorist attacks against Washington in 2001. The lesson of that chapter is that manual procedures are still very necessary, but can be error prone.

Other chapters talk about the critical infrastructures that might be attacked. Including energy, banks, and the communications grid. The vulnerabilities of each are cursorily looked at. Actually, all the chapters have the property that they seem too short. Within the space constraints of the book, they are really just summaries/briefings of far more comprehensive discussions.