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Drones used by the Ukrainian army are often commercial models. — AFP
Technological innovations have aided Ukraine in evening some of the odds against Russia during the current conflict. One example of this is with Internet protocol-based video solutions, especially for getting the best insights to the right people at the right time.
This approach is abbreviated to C4ISR in technology circles. C4ISR stands for Command, Control, Communications, Computers (C4) Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR). Advanced C4ISR capabilities offer users in active theatres of operation an opportunity to secure and maintain strategic and tactical advantage through enhanced situational awareness and knowledge of the adversary and environment by shortening the time between sensing and response.
Mark Rushton, Global Defence and Security Lead at VITEC, explains to Digital Journal about the evolving role of IP video capture and distribution across intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance platforms in Ukraine.
Rushton opens by considering the role of video in wartime: “As tragic as it is, we are in a space where video has become a crucial asset in wartime. Accessing video-based intelligence at the right time and place is a very effective method for gaining information about the constantly changing military landscape.”
Moving onto the current conflict, Rushton sates: “As we have seen since the early days of the Ukrainian invasion, video plays a crucial role in showing hostile troop movements and the general disposition of the arena. Beyond simply capturing video, strategic and tactical decision-makers also benefit from the ability to quickly and appropriately share video-based intelligence. It has been critical in optimizing the efficacy of a smaller Ukrainian force by coordinating with coalition partners worldwide.”
Another area Rushton focuses on is the role of video in proving effective for quickly disseminating information. Here Rushton analyses: “In the past, video applications have been governed by military specifications that were often unique to individual countries or coalitions, which made sharing sensitive intelligence difficult. However, during the war in Ukraine, NATO has set a standard and has been able to communicate essential video intelligence with the Ukrainian military and first responders. It has enhanced the ability to attack a target while protecting — and recovering — from hostile actions.”
In terms of data, Rushton points out: “As important as the video content itself is, there is an even more critical element: metadata. Metadata is the information embedded within video files that allow users to identify the file’s characteristics, making it easier to search, use and manage the video while confirming the accuracy, credibility and utility of the intelligence captured.”
Rushton says: “Video metadata includes the date the video was created, the creator’s name, location, date of upload, and even the camera ID. Based on these, and other critical data points, staff and leaders can validate data and ensure proper handling and dissemination of information based on policies designed to protect assets, sources and methods.”
To facilitate good communications, Rushton says it is important to ensure interoperability at this metadata level. Another important area is with communications standards.
In this context, Rushton says: “Enhanced commercial standards are boosting the effectiveness of Ukraine’s defence. Streaming companies in the commercial space, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, utilize video standards to compress data into formats that are streamed live or packaged up for efficient data downloads. Minimizing bandwidth while maintaining the best clarity and picture quality is a crucial business and economic factor.”
This is also a critical issue in military theatres of operation. According to Rushton: “It is important for ISR video intelligence to be shared across a range of devices. Compression standards allow ISR infrastructures to be agnostic to the networking and endpoint environment.”
As a result, Rushton continues: “While a wide variety of equipment is deployed in the field, the coalition partners supporting Ukraine can share data in a format that anybody can use. Utilizing the standardized codecs used for streaming video makes this manageable. In wartime situations, like the war in Ukraine, it is vital to implement the most stringent security measures to protect video intelligence by securing lines of communication through encryption and other strict security practices, including proper authentication and authorization.”
In terms of cybersecurity, Rushton finds: “IP video encryption is an essential layer of security that ensures data is safe — even if it is intercepted. There are many sources of video intelligence, including data that civilians provide. Citizens who are unable — or unwilling– to flee are making considerable contributions to intelligence efforts simply by utilizing their cell phones to post videos.”
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