In the blind spot: Influence operations and sub-threshold situational awareness in Norway

Abstract

Situational awareness in the face of hybrid campaigns is undermined by ‘blind spots’, which this article conceptualises. Blind spots are where legal or political frameworks preclude intelligence gathering below the threshold of war. Drawing on a historical case study of alterations in legislation and security police directives in Norway from 1950–2021, the analysis shows how an influence operation’s blind spot varied along with shifts in the balance between national security concerns and democratic individual rights. Recent initiatives to criminalise domestic collaboration with foreign influence operators are discussed, and the advent of AI and microtargeting presented as a challenge out of reach of such legislation.