As cyber connectivity increases, foreign actors have been able to exploit vulnerabilities on smartphones, computers, and the digital infrastructure that supports them to undermine democracies. Probing and penetrating computer networks and connected systems allows malign actors to surreptitiously steal, alter, and collect data, damaging citizens’ privacy and disrupting organizational and institutional processes in democracies. Find ASD’s work on cybersecurity on this page.
Maurice Turner Discusses the White House’s New Task Force to Curb Ransomware on CBS News
Federal officials are looking to crack down on ransomware attacks that are attacking critical U.S. infrastructure by implementing a new multi-agency task force. The announcement comes just days after the notorious Russian-linked ransomware group, RE [...]
Maurice Turner Discusses the United States’ Ransomware Deterrent Strategy on CBS News
Our current ransomware deterrent strategy is "simply not working," Cybersecurity Fellow Maurice Turner said. President Biden says he will "deliver" a message to Russian President Putin over the massive global ransomware attack, believed to have or [...]
From COVID-19 to the Tokyo Olympics: Russia’s Next Cyber and Information Battle
Covid-19 vaccines and “mask diplomacy” have been the centerpieces of many countries’ soft power strategies over the past year. Early in the pandemic, countries like Russia and China sought to use shipments of personal protective equipment (PPE) and [...]
Making Cyberspace Safe for Democracy
Cybersecurity Fellow Maurice Turner led a conversation on making cyberspace safe for democracy at the German Marshall Fund's Brussels Forum. He was joined Mieke Eoyang, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy at the U.S. Departmen [...]
Defending Democracies Against Autocratic Advances
Head of Policy and Research Jessica Brandt led a conversation on democratic competition with autocracies at GMF's Brussels Forum. She was joined by U.S. Senator Ben Cardin; National Institute for Civil Discourse Executive Director Carolyn J. Lukensm [...]
Investing in Resilience
Program Manager and Fellow Nad’a Kovalčíková led a discussion on how and why NATO member states can build up their democratic, societal, and economic resilience at NATO 2030 at Brussels Forum with U.S. Representative Gerald Connolly; Tania Latici, a [...]
What to Watch: ASD Experts Weigh in as Biden and Putin Prepare to Meet
President Biden’s trip to demonstrate “America’s renewed commitment to our allies and partners” and showcase “the capacity of democracies to both meet the challenges and deter the threats” culminates with a one-on-one meeting between Biden and Russi [...]
Maurice Turner Discusses Election Cybersecurity with USC
Security concerns about Arizona’s election audit. What keeps policymakers up at night about the Colonial Pipeline. Nevada’s latest take on election security. Listen to Adam Clayton Powell, III, Executive Director of the Election Cybersecurity Initi [...]
Lindsay Gorman and Amber Frankland in Just Security: It’s Time for Congress to Push Companies to Come Forward on Hacks
Russia and China have the United States reeling from two devastating cyberattacks in under six months. The mammoth SolarWinds breach—attributed to Russia and affecting at least nine U.S. government agencies, 100 private companies, and further victim [...]
Maurice Turner Talks the Future of Democracy with USC
In this episode of the Election Cybersecurity Initiative Podcast, host Adam Clayton Powell III speaks with Maurice Turner, Cybersecurity Fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy. They discuss the latest developments in cybersecurity such as Ar [...]
Kristine Berzina Discusses the Colonial Pipeline Cyberattack on Latvian Public Radio
Senior Fellow Kristine Berzina spoke on Latvian Radio's weekly foreign policy news show about the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack, how it is different from the fuel shortages caused by conflicts in the Middle East in the 1970s, and whether something s [...]
How to Structure a Foreign Malign Influence Center
On Monday, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) confirmed to Politico that it is working to establish a Foreign Malign Influence Center. The center, which was first authorized as part of the 2020 Defense Authorization bill, wil [...]