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.
Interference Matters
How Government Agencies Can Signal Trust Online Using .Gov Domain Names
Laura Rosenberger Talks 2020 Election Security on ‘Intelligence Matters’
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with ASD Director Laura Rosenberger. Rosenberger details the breadth of foreign interference threats the U.S. faces ahead of the 2020 presidential election from known actors like Ru [...]
Laura Rosenberger on Making Cyberspace Safe for Democracy in Foreign Affairs
Democratic countries view information as an empowering force in the hands of people, while authoritarian systems see this model as a threat; they use surveillance, censorship, and information manipulation to shore up their power and weaken democrati [...]
Nad’a KovalÄŤĂková Discusses Protecting Democracy in the Digital Era at the Ralf Dahrendorf Roundtable
Program Manager and Fellow Nad’a KovalÄŤĂková gave a talk on protecting democracy in the digital age at the Ralf Dahrendorf Roundtable in Lisbon. [...]
Laura Rosenberger on the Laws of War in Cyberspace at the National Cathedral
ASD Co-director Laura Rosenberger joined Amb. Susan Rice, Prof. Joseph Nye, and Gen. Keith Alexander (Ret.) for a panel discussion on the Laws of War in Cyberspace. Â [...]
ASD’s David Salvo and Clint Watts on Ransomwear Attacks on MSNBC’s Hardball
David Salvo and Clint Watts appeared on MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews to discuss U.S. officials’ fear of ransomware attacks on election infrastructure during the 2020 elections.  [...]
Laura Rosenberger on Russia’s 2016 Hack and Leak Operations on Lawfare’s The Report Podcast
ASD Director Laura Rosenberger joined Lawfare’s The Report podcast to discuss the Russian government’s hack-and-leak operation in the lead-up to the 2016 election. She describes how Russian intelligence timed the release of stolen emails and data to [...]
Laura Rosenberger discusses Russian hack-and-leak operations on The Report podcast by Lawfare
ASD Director Laura Rosenberger joined Lawfare's The Report podcast to discuss the Russian government's hack-and-leak operation in the lead-up to the 2016 election. Rosenberger describes how Russian intelligence timed the release of stolen emails and [...]
Mueller Hearings: Policy Recommendations on Combatting Foreign Interference
In his testimony this week, former Special Counsel Robert Mueller III reiterated that foreign interference is “among the most serious” challenges to democracy, and that it “deserves the attention of every American.” The Alliance for Securing Democr [...]
Laura Rosenberger in Discussion at the Aspen Security Forum: Democracy, Misinformation, and Cyber Campaigns
ASD Director Laura Rosenberger participated in a panel discussion, "New Threats from Old Adversaries: Democracy, Misinformation, and Cyber Campaigns," at the Aspen Security Forum on July 19, 2019. Joining Rosenberger to discuss disinformation, cyber [...]
Online Harms White Paper: Open Consultation Submission to the U.K. Parliament
The following is an introduction to the submission by ASD Intern Amber Frankland In April 2019, the United Kingdom’s Home Office published its Online Harms White Paper, which proposed a regulatory framework designed to address the prevalence of “il [...]
Jessica Brandt on the Florida Election Hacks in Slate
ASD Head of Research Jessica Brandt discusses the 2016 Florida voter registration hacks and lays out the chain of events that led to this failure of election security. Â [...]
Laura Rosenberger Talks the Future of Hacking Democracy on the Future State Podcast
ASD Co-director Laura Rosenberger was featured on the Future State podcast to discuss ASD’s work on the authoritarian toolkit for malign interference and what lies ahead as important elections in both Europe and North America take place in 2019 and [...]