Conceptualization of information warfare in the context of the development of modern social networks

In this paper, the author examines the main theoretical directions in the study of information wars as a phenomenon of the modern political process in the world. Much attention is paid to the analysis of domestic approaches to determining the components of information wars, their goal-setting and mechanisms. Separately, the paper examines the phenomenon of social networks as the most important component of information warfare. The relevance of the research topic is determined by the increasing use of political propaganda in today's informational and increasingly digitalised world. The paper operationalises the concepts of "information warfare" and "political propaganda", studies technologies and methods of political influence, factors and stages of development of political propaganda, and describes the role of social networks as tools of political propaganda. As a result of the conducted research, the close relationship between social networks and information warfare technologies was confirmed. This is facilitated by the following factors: a large number of users, lack of control over the virtual space, imitation of real communication by virtual. The study conceptualised the main concepts in the works of Russian scholars to analyse the use of social networking technologies in political propaganda and information warfare. The relevance of the research topic is determined by the the fact that in the modern information and increasingly digitalizing world. The paper operationalizes the concepts of "information warfare" and "political propaganda", examines technologies and methods of political influence, factors and stages of development of political propaganda, and describes the role of social networks as tools of political propaganda.  

information warfare, propaganda, social networks, conceptualization, hybrid warfare, contrpropaganda, cognitive warfare, desinformation, mass media, information security