4. Countering Hybrid Threats Through Signals Intelligence and Big Data Analysis?

Hybrid threats/warfare refers to hostile activities that exploit the blurred area between peace and war, designed to stay below the threshold for response, hence not giving the recipient of the action an obvious venue to respond or retaliate. As hybrid operations potentially can target all spheres of society, not only the security sector of a state, bulk collection and analysis of “all” digital signals represent a promising method for countering and detecting such threats. Yet, untargeted “bulk collection” of communication data is also very intrusive. As such, it is difficult to reconcile with fundamental human rights and civil liberties such as the right to privacy, the right to free speech and the right to informational self-determination. Thus, democracies first need to examine carefully whether the use of bulk collection can lawfully be extended to counter hybrid threats. Second, should they deem it constitutional, they have to ensure that effective accountability mechanisms and rigorous safeguards exist against undue rights infringements. This chapter investigates this dilemma, giving an updated assessment of the current threats, challenges and potential solutions for liberal democracies ruled by law.