What is the primary goal of Information Warfare?

The primary goal of Information Warfare is to preserve friendly freedom of action during cooperation, competition, and armed conflict. This approach emphasizes the protection and augmentation of one's own capabilities while simultaneously disrupting or degrading those of an adversary. By ensuring that friendly forces can operate without interference, while also influencing the information environment, organizations can maintain strategic advantages.

This goal encapsulates various aspects of Information Warfare, including defending against misinformation, safeguarding communications, and utilizing information to influence public perception or enemy decision-making processes. The importance of maintaining freedom of action is critical in a landscape where information can shape outcomes in both peace and conflict, making it foundational to effective military strategy.

Other considerations, such as enhancing cyber capabilities or developing offensive strategies, while important, are means to support this overarching goal rather than the primary objective itself. Similarly, ensuring information superiority is a critical element of Information Warfare, but it is a condition that ultimately supports the goal of maintaining freedom of action rather than standing alone as an objective.