Digital Age Wars: How Could They Paralyze the World?

Digital Age Wars: How Could They Paralyze the World?

An Egyptian expert states that electronic warfare can disrupt banks, airports, and stock exchanges, while cyber warfare may use viruses and software to disable critical infrastructure like water and electricity systems.


The Lebanese mission to the United Nations revealed on Thursday that the wireless communication devices, such as pagers and walkie-talkies, that exploded in Lebanon this week, resulting in dozens of deaths and thousands of injuries, were detonated through electronic messages.

According to a letter from Lebanon's mission to the UN, preliminary investigations conducted by Lebanese authorities regarding the wireless communication devices showed that they had been rigged with explosives before arriving in Lebanon.

The letter, sent to the UN Security Council, also stated that the devices, including pagers and other wireless communication tools like walkie-talkies, were triggered by electronic messages sent to the devices.

This raises important questions:

Is the world shifting toward electronic warfare as a replacement for traditional battles with guns and missiles?

And can the global economy, which relies heavily on digitization and technological revolutions, including the internet for everything from banking and airports to electricity and water services, handle a war that could potentially paralyze these systems?

Future Wars

Dr. Mohamed Mohsen Ramadan, an Egyptian expert in cybersecurity and cybercrime prevention, told Al Arabiya.net and Al Hadath.net that electronic warfare could indeed bring the world to a standstill. He explained that cyber warfare could disrupt banks, airports, and stock exchanges since these institutions heavily rely on electronic systems and software to manage their operations in the digital world of the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI).

He further added that attacks targeting the vital infrastructure of these institutions could lead to system failures, data loss, network breaches, or even a complete disruption of financial and logistical operations. He emphasized the importance of distinguishing between electronic warfare and cyber warfare.

Electronic Warfare

Ramadan explained that electronic warfare traditionally involves using the electromagnetic spectrum, covering all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation, to jam or disrupt communications and radar systems, or to gather intelligence through signals. In essence, it focuses on exploiting electromagnetic frequencies.

Cyber Warfare

On the other hand, cyber warfare involves attacks carried out via the internet and digital networks. These include the use of viruses, malware, and hacking to disable critical infrastructure or infiltrate government and private networks to steal information or disrupt systems.

Ramadan warned that large-scale cyberattacks could have catastrophic global consequences, such as crippling banking systems and triggering economic crises, halting airport operations and bringing transportation to a standstill, or disrupting stock markets and threatening financial stability.

He concluded by emphasizing the distinction: "Cyber warfare focuses on the digital space and the internet, while electronic warfare centers around the electromagnetic spectrum and communications."