e-Democracy – an invitation to i-Warfare?
ABSTRACT
e-Democracy, which is the latest development in the in the relentless role out from the intellectual production line of Internet and Web applications, is going to increase the opportunity for Information Warfare (i-Warfare) a hundred fold. This new set of ideas and concepts is believed in some circles to be even more important to our society than e- Commerce and e-Business.
Although sometimes mistakenly regarded as being the same as or at least very similar to e-Government, e-Democracy is really quite different. Whereas e- Government addresses the way the Internet and the Web facilitates the administration of our society as government both central and local affects it, e-Democracy concerns itself with the facilitation of political processes. Political processes in democracies involve the changing of our rulers, the creation of laws, and the formulation of policy. Thus the political processes and not the services offered by government are the focal point of e-Democracy. And the rough and tumble of political struggles both within and without political parties can certainly be intensified by the use of i-Warfare technology and strategies. There is even the question of whether e-Democracy is itself a viable concept or whether it is no more than just an i-Warfare ploy in itself.
AUTHORS
School of Computer Science and Statistics, Trinity College, Dublin
Dan Remenyi is a Visiting Professor in Information Systems Management at Trinity College Dublin and an associated member of faculty at Henley Management College in the United Kingdom. As a management consultant working world wide, he has worked with computers as an IS professional, business consultant and as a user. In recent years he has specialised in all things “e” including e-Business, e-Government and now e-Democracy. He has written books and papers in a variety of aspects of the field of IT and regularly conducts courses and seminar as well as working as a consultant in this area. He holds a BsocSc, an MBA, and a PhD.
Published In
Journal of Information Warfare
The definitive publication for the best and latest research and analysis on information warfare, information operations, and cyber crime. Available in traditional hard copy or online.
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