Overview

This book traces a disturbing lineage: from propaganda and ""othering"" to the weaponisation of mind control in the age of AI and neurotechnology. It shows how regimes, from the Soviet Union to Putin's Russia, have used fear, surveillance, and psychological manipulation to crush dissent and manufacture obedience. It then follows how these methods evolved into modern cognitive warfare-operations that target how we think and decide via social media, big data, and algorithmic profiling. Major powers-including Russia, China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Israel, and Iran-now deploy troll farms, micro-targeted disinformation, deepfakes, and automated influence networks as core tools of hybrid war. Conflicts such as the Russia-Ukraine war, the Israel-Hamas confrontation, and the shadow conflict with Iran have become test beds for large-scale manipulation of perception and belief. The book also uncovers leaked evidence that Western democracies are experimenting with the same technologies they condemn, including offensive deepfakes and AI-assisted psychological operations. Looking ahead, it examines emerging brain-computer interfaces and neuro-enhancement programs that link soldiers' brains to weapons and command systems, raising urgent questions about cognitive liberty and the militarisation of the mind. Finally, it asks what can be done. The closing chapters outline practical strategies for resisting othering and division, and argue for strong ethical and legal limits on AI and neurotechnology, mapping how our minds became a battlefield-and what must change if democracies are to defend both security and human dignity in the twenty-first century.

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9781764435505

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