Virtually Massive: Understanding Mass and Combat Power in Cyber War.

摘要

The US Air Force defines mass as to concentrate the effects of combat power at the most advantageous place and time to achieve decisive results; Air Force Doctrine Document (AFDD) 3-12 echoes this definition while noting that cyber forces must integrate and synchronize with other forces. But what does this mean for strategy in the cyber domain. Some have suggested that the concept of mass no longer applies in cyberspace, and that a handful of attackers could launch devastating attacks from anywhere in the world. Col Gregory Rattray, (USAF-Ret), in Strategic Warfare in Cyberspace discusses the support functions, such as network intelligence, targeting, and tool development, that can make cyber attacks more effective. This suggests another perspective on mass- one including not just the tooth of operators attacking targets, but also the tail required to put together a team capable of consistently launching successful attacks (since he suggests the analysts and programmers might need to significantly outnumber the people actually carrying out attacks). This is a significant difference, and an important question to resolve, but personnel issues are not the only way to understand mass in cyber war.