Impact of Social Media on Political Stability and National Security: Experience of the Kingdom of Sweden

Abstract

The article analyzes the impact of social media on society and describes the level of challenges and dangers that governments of other countries are faced and forced to consider within the above-mentioned challenges of the digital world. The article dwells upon an influence of the digital dimension of the confrontation in the Russian-Ukrainian war and the rapid transformation of information into weapons during the war. The observed fact of the growing role of social networks in the structure of security and defense of modern countries is stated as well. Using the example of the Kingdom of Sweden, it is highlighted how social media are gradually becoming an important focus in strategic plans and defense and government documents of Sweden. The article analyzes main threats and challenges identified by the Swedish government which were caused by social media and citizen disinformation campaigns. The set of information security measures in Sweden is noted, from the creation of special agencies to counter cyberattacks to the restoration of Cold War era counter-propaganda programs.

The Swedish example proves to us that working with social media and information in the digital dimension is important not only in times of war. Today it is about constant improvement of communication between the state and citizens, because informational influence on society can be exerted even in completely peaceful times. Swedish government structures respond to these challenges actively, constantly adapting their strategic documents, conducting research and creating specialized agencies that protect democracy and the security of citizens, in particular, and social media as a whole. The direct influence of Russian propaganda and its extraordinary activity around everything related to Ukraine during the last decades prove that in the Ukrainian security system – the protection of citizens from disinformation, their ability to resist information operations on the network and increased attention to psychological protection should become one of the strategic and central elements of the entire multi-component defense system. The presence of developed policies, regular training for citizens and interdepartmental interaction, the possible creation of specialized agencies for psychological protection – are a guarantee of political stability and the realization of the idea of Ukraine's integration into the Euro-Atlantic space.

The analysis of the strategic documents of the Kingdom of Sweden demonstrates the importance of social networks in the security system of this country. The Swedish government understands that the information space of the kingdom is not too large – this is due to the number of the country's population. At the same time, the majority of the population uses one or another social network. Therefore, the revival of the defense practices of the Cold War alone is not enough. The latest technologies always become a convenient means of waging information wars, so working with them and understanding their new role, through programmatic and strategic documents, should be done in real time.