About

Hedge Intelligence is an independent security-focused blog dedicated to tracking, mapping, and analysing influence operations worldwide. It aims to promote a comprehensive understanding of threat actors and supports proactive deterrence. In doing so, it also seeks to bridge the gap between open-source reporting, analytical insight, and effective governmental response.

For this blog, influence operations are defined as coordinated actions that shape societal perceptions and behavior to disrupt, destabilize, or influence a perpetrator’s decision-making.

Content

Hedge Intelligence draws attention to relevant case studies of influence operations reported in open sources, as well as to countermeasures undertaken by governments to address such hostile activities. Particularly significant case studies are examined in greater detail in the analysis section, which also provides an in-depth inspection of specific state and non-state actors operating behind the scenes, as well as particular policy recommendations.

Sources

Hedge Intelligence relies exclusively on publicly available information. The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author.

Audiences

Its primary audience includes academics, researchers, journalists, government professionals, and civil society representatives, primarily in democratic nations, who are engaged in understanding and countering such threats.

Key principles

Hedge Intelligence’s logo, a hedgehog quill crossed with two spears, represents three key principles behind the blog, inspired by one of nature’s most resilient creatures:

Detect

Hedgehogs depend on early threat detection and an excellent understanding of their surroundings in order to survive and thrive in a dangerous environment. Their survival is based on listening, smelling, sensing vibrations, and most importantly analysing and interpreting these signals correctly. In the same way, democracies should be reliant on good intelligence and analysis-based decision-making to survive in a turbulent and ever-changing modern security environment.

Endure

When attacked or provoked, hedgehogs do not panic and instead they transform themselves into a structure made of thousands of needles, ready to withstand at all costs. In the same way, democracies need to be prepared to continue functioning under stress and constant attacks, with every individual and institution acting as one of the needles on the hedgehog’s quill. Systemic and whole-of-society resilience is there for a must for any democratic state.

Deter

Hedgehogs are also nature’s masters of deterrence. Their defensive posture of thousand needles alone signals to predators that attacking them would be too costly. Democracies should therefore follow a similar approach in deterrence and clearly signal their willingness to respond and impose costs on aggressors.