49 Items

Analysis & Opinions - War on the Rocks

Beyond Killer Robots: How Artificial Intelligence Can Improve Resilience in Cyber Space

| Sep. 06, 2018

Recently, one of us spent a week in China discussing the future of war with a group of American and Chinese academics. Everyone speculated about the role of artificial intelligence (AI), but, surprisingly, many Chinese participants equated AI almost exclusively with armies of killer robots.

A cyber threat map adorns a wall of the Cyber Security Operations Center at AEP headquarters in Columbus, Ohio on Wednesday, May 20, 2015.

AP Photo/John Minchillo

Analysis & Opinions - Foreign Affairs

Battlefield Internet: A Plan for Securing Cyberspace

| September/October 2018

The Internet has always been much more than a venue for conflict and competition; it is the backbone of global commerce and communication. That said, cyberspace is not, as is often thought, simply part of the global commons in the way that the air or the sea is. States assert jurisdiction over, and companies claim ownership of, the physical infrastructure that composes the Internet and the data that traverses it. States and companies built the Internet, and both are responsible for maintaining it. Actions taken in the public sector affect the private sector, and vice versa. In this way, the Internet has always been hybrid in nature. 

So, accordingly, is the real cyberwar threat.

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Analysis & Opinions - Cipher Brief

How to Run a Cyber War…Game

| Apr. 22, 2018

The Cipher Brief hosted its second annual threat conference at beautiful Cloister Resort on Sea Island, Ga., this month. While there, Dmitri Alperovitch and I ran cyber exercises that pushed participants, many of whom are former senior government leaders, to step into the shoes of U.S. national security decision-makers to resolve international crisis situations. Because the sessions were entirely off-the-record, I won’t discuss how specific participants reacted and what they recommended, but rather I will reflect on what lessons can be learned from these types of exercises and how The Cipher Brief’s can be a model for others.

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Video - Center for Strategic & International Studies

"Star Wars" and Cyber: Can history help us build today's defenses?

| Mar. 23, 2018

Building effective cyber defenses is a major challenge for defense planners, just as missile defense has been since the original Strategic Defense Initiative. In both realms the offense has the advantage, making effective defense difficult. Missile defense, however, now has several decades of experience producing and fielding new technologies. The Project on Military and Diplomatic History hosted a panel discussion of CSIS experts and Michael Sulmeyer of the Belfer Center on the history of missile defense, its experience in developing new technologies, and what these tell us about the prospects for building effective cyber defenses.

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Analysis & Opinions - Foreign Affairs

How the U.S. Can Play Cyber-Offense

| Mar. 22, 2018

The focus on cyber-deterrence is understandable but misplaced. Deterrence aims to change the calculations of adversaries by persuading them that the risks of an attack outweigh the rewards or that they will be denied the benefits they seek. But in seeking merely to deter enemies, the United States finds itself constantly on the back foot. Instead, the United States should be pursuing a more active cyberpolicy, one aimed not at deterring enemies but at disrupting their capabilities. In cyberwarfare, Washington should recognize that the best defense is a good offense.

- Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center Newsletter

Cyber Security Project Launches Initiative on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

| Spring 2018

In keeping with the Belfer Center’s mandate on science and international affairs, the Cyber Security Project has launched a new research initiative on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) and their implications for cybersecurity. Led by Michael Sulmeyer, the Cyber Security Project seeks to explore themes of conflict in cyberspace and both AI and ML will play a growing role in national defense and security. Cyber Security Project fellow Ben Buchanan began the focus on AI and ML with his June 2017 Belfer Center Report, “Machine Learning for Policy Makers.”

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Announcement

Cybersecurity Project Call for “Cybersecurity in the Middle-East” Fellowship

| Feb. 27, 2018

The Cybersecurity Project at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs is looking for a junior or mid-career practitioner or academic with a strong background or interest in cybersecurity and the Middle East to address these issues. The topic of cybersecurity should be construed broadly and does not require professional-level technical competency. 

Audio - War on the Rocks

War on the Rocks Podcast: The Big Cyber Spectacular

| Feb. 15, 2018

In our latest episode, Usha Sahay and Ryan Evans were joined by Thomas Rid, Michael Sulmeyer, and a mystery guest (ok, ok, it’s Corinna Fehst) to talk about cyber-security, election meddling, reports about U.S. intel agencies buying back pilfered hacking tools, going dark, legislatures as the vulnerable soft cyber underbelly of democracies, and the different threats posed by Russia and China.

Also, “Password1” is not a good password according to our guests. So you should probably change that.

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Video

Hearing: Department of Defense’s role in Protecting Democratic Elections

| Feb. 13, 2018

Election Security The Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Cybersecurity held a hearing on the Defense Department’s role in ensuring the U.S. election process is secure from foreign influence. Much of the discussion focused on Russian meddling, which took place in the 2016 presidential election and was expected to continue in future U.S. elections as well as those around the world. Committee members and witnesses agreed that the issue would continue to get worse and that there must be a solution that includes both the government and the private sector, while understanding that each has different interests in terms of national security and profit, respectively.