Dr James Shires & Isabella Wilkinson
Many aspects of modern conflict are increasingly defined by the internet and digital technologies. The concept of resilience is essential to understanding the complex web of incentives, interests and dependencies that have come to define how the internet and these technologies work – and, often, do not work – in conflict and crisis.
To aid understanding of how different actors use the internet and digital technologies in such scenarios, this research paper proposes a distinction between two types of resilience – technical and sociopolitical. Technical resilience focuses primarily on technological systems constituting the internet, while sociopolitical resilience refers to the human networks and groups that both maintain those technological systems and ensure they are available to use.
The paper draws on two case studies for key insights on elements of internet resilience such as digital infrastructure, conflict dynamics and policy priorities. The first case study discusses internet resilience in the context of events before, during and after the Western coalition’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. The second reflects on the interplay of technical and sociopolitical resilience in relation to Russia’s war on Ukraine. Each study is a demonstration of how internet resilience is crafted and contested – and how decisions taken in conflict or crisis situations can have significant consequences for the resilience of the internet at the global and local levels.
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