Cybersecurity and Cyberwarfare

A central question of our time is whether we can continue enjoying the Good Internet while suppressing the Bad Internet. The greatest threat to ordinary Americans comes from the Internet’s role in providing so-called critical infrastructure — cyber-networks for finance, power, transportation, health care, communications and shopping, to name a few. I am not a cyber-expert, but here’s a brief outline of what I think desirable:

The Trump administration is signaling a broader crackdown on the Chinese communications sector — well beyond the companies that have already come under harsh US scrutiny. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Hickey said that the government’s past objections to powerful Chinese telecommunications players operating in the US may provide a blueprint for the Federal Communications Commission to pursue other firms as well. “We’re concerned about providers that are subject to the undue influence and control of the Chinese government,” said Hickey.

The United Kingdom government is drawing up plans to force a full phase out of Huawei from Britain’s 5G networks within three years. Government officials want to ensure that the UK’s telecoms networks — including 5G mobile phone infrastructure — do not contain equipment from the Chinese company beyond 2023 because they believe this could compromise national security. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Jan granted the Chinese telecommunications equipment maker a limited role in supplying kit for the UK’s 5G networks, while capping Huawei’s market share to 35 percent.

The Senate Commerce Committee approved a handful of communications-related bills May 20, favorably recommending them to the full Senate for a vote and passage. Approved bills include:

Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) appointment as acting chairman of the Intelligence Committee could mean more trouble for tech and telecommunication companies with ties to China. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced Sen Rubio’s appointment in the absence of Sen Richard Burr (R-NC), who temporarily stepped down from the top spot while the FBI is investigating his stock trades.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced plans to protect US national security by restricting Huawei’s ability to use US technology and software to design and manufacture its semiconductors abroad. This announcement cuts off Huawei’s efforts to undermine US export controls. BIS is amending its longstanding foreign-produced direct product rule and the Entity List to narrowly and strategically target Huawei’s acquisition of semiconductors that are the direct product of certain US software and technology. 

House Commerce Committee Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR) and Consumer Protection Subcommittee Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) announced the subcommittee’s agenda to ensure American leadership in emerging technology to beat China and other challenges to global competitiveness. The emerging technology agenda includes 15 bills designed to advance American leadership. The objectives of the legislation are "Advancing and Securing Emerging Technologies", "Global Data Innovation and Security", "Advancing Innovation Across the Country", and "Combating Harms Through Innovation". 

The mounting human death toll and unfolding financial calamity of the current pandemic is one thing. But the ripple effects will last for years—and given the country’s bumbled handling of the virus itself, it seems an open question whether we’re in a strong position to respond and confront what comes after it. The US's ongoing, disastrous response to the pandemic—by almost any measure one of the worst in the developed world—is sending a clear message to other countries that the U.S.

Since the 2016 election attack by Russia, public attention has focused on cyberattacks. The risk is getting only worse: The more wired everyday society becomes, the more reliant it is on interlocking technology systems that were never designed with security in mind. The increasing complexity and interconnectedness of the various networks that power everyday life increases the chances of what Jason Matheny calls a “digital flubber” incident—the possibility of an autonomous system working as intended, yet spiraling and cascading with unintended and unforeseen consequences. 

In the wake of a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the subject of allowing Ligado to operate a 5G service adjacent to GPS spectrum (a hearing that saw the Federal Communications Commission hammered by legislators, military brass, and even iconic pilot Sully Sullenberger), almost two dozen bipartisan members of the House Armed Services Committee have written to the FCC to express their "deep concern."  Lead signatories on the letter include Strategic Forces Subcommittee Chairman Jim Cooper (D-TN) and Ranking Member Michael Turner (R-OH)  They said that while Ligado has argued that D