The Cyber Statecraft Initiative works at the nexus of geopolitics, technology, and security to craft strategies to help shape the conduct of statecraft and to better inform and secure users. This work extends through the competition of state and non-state actors, the security of the internet and computing systems, the safety of operational technology and physical systems, and the communities of cyberspace. The Initiative convenes a diverse network of passionate and knowledgeable contributors, bridging the gap among technical, policy, and user communities.

Our work

The Atlantic Council Technology Programs comprises five existing efforts—the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), the GeoTech Center, the Cyber Statecraft Initiative, the Democracy + Tech Initiative, and the Capacity Building Initiative. These operations work together to address the geopolitical implications of technology and provide policymakers and global stakeholders necessary research, insights, and convenings to address challenges around global technology and ensure its responsible advancement.

Team

Fellows

Publications

Issue Brief

May 10, 2021

What would Winston do? Cooperative approaches toward securing the Five Eyes information environment

By Daniel Dobrowolski, David V. Gioe, and Trey Herr

Given the global prevalence of English, the countries comprising the Five Eyes intelligence alliance should build upon existing proven frameworks to cooperate to secure their shared information environment.

Cybersecurity Disinformation

Report

May 10, 2021

Mission resilience: Adapting defense aerospace to evolving cybersecurity challenges

By Simon Handler, Trey Herr, Steve Luczynski, and Reed Porada

While aerospace presents inherently distinct challenges from other spaces, defense organizations could look to the private sector and adapt commercial practices to implement the principles of resilience.

Cybersecurity Defense Industry

New Atlanticist

May 4, 2021

A plea to the Pentagon: Don’t sacrifice resilience on the altar of innovation

By JC Herz

US defense systems are vulnerable because they are brittle and unmaintained, and thus not resilient. Fixing it will require a new approach to acquisition.

Cybersecurity Defense Industry

In the News

Apr 30, 2021

Myles-Primakoff and Sherman in Foreign Policy: Russia Can’t Afford to Block Twitter—Yet

Politics & Diplomacy Russia

In the News

Apr 26, 2021

Sherman and Herr in Council on Foreign Relations: the US should make “leverage” the foundation of its cyber strategy

The SolarWinds incident spurred a flurry of debates about whether the U.S. Department of Defense’s 2018 “defend forward” strategy should, or could, have prevented the calamity. Putting aside that the Russian operation was cyber espionage—stealing data rather than denying, disrupting, degrading, or destroying systems—some of these arguments reflected an idea that the United States should […]

Cybersecurity

In the News

Apr 22, 2021

Handler and Sherman in the National Interest: The United States needs a public strategy for deterring disinformation

By Atlantic Council

To give the disinformation threat the credence it deserves, the government must create a public strategy on combating disinformation, with deterrence as a main component.

Cybersecurity Disinformation

In the News

Apr 20, 2021

Forscey in Lawfare: the cyber regulators are coming for the cloud

Today’s cloud computing industry is as important as it is complicated, a critical and opaque sector that undergirds the economy but that few people truly understand. Cloud services have become a pillar of digital society, supporting nonstop innovation. They also create interdependencies that generate a wellspring of concentrated risk. Ensuring that the various subsectors of […]

Cybersecurity

In the News

Apr 19, 2021

John in Dark Reading: SolarWinds a catalyst for change and a cry for collaboration

The Sunburst campaign, which includes the SolarWinds incident, is not unique in its type or frequency. Supply-chain attacks have been happening more often over the past seven or so years. As adversaries continue to rapidly identify vulnerabilities, coupled with the world’s increased reliance on digital connectivity, we face mounting challenges in preventing, detecting, and responding […]

Cybersecurity

Report

Mar 29, 2021

Broken trust: Lessons from Sunburst

By Trey Herr, Will Loomis, Emma Schroeder, Stewart Scott, Simon Handler, and Tianjiu Zuo

The story of trust is an old one, but the Sunburst cyber-espionage campaign was a startling reminder of the United States’ collective cyber insecurity and the inadequacy of current US strategy to compete in a dynamic intelligence contest in cyberspace.

Cybersecurity Intelligence

Conflict, Risk, and Tech

Mar 24, 2021

How to reverse three decades of escalating cyber conflict

By Jason Healey and Robert Jervis

Cyber conflict has not yet escalated from a fight inside cyberspace to a more traditional armed attack because of cyberspace. In part, this is because countries understand there are some tacit upper limits to escalation above which the response from the offended country will be war. Unfortunately, this happy state may not last.

Cybersecurity Technology & Innovation

The Atlantic Council’s Cyber Statecraft Initiative, part of the Atlantic Council Technology Programs, works at the nexus of geopolitics and cybersecurity to craft strategies to help shape the conduct of statecraft and to better inform and secure users of technology.

Licensing CSI Graphics

All original graphics created by the Cyber Statecraft Initiative (CSI) are available for re-use under the following conditions:

  • Written permission must be granted by CSI.
  • Graphics may be copied and distributed in any medium or format in unadapted form only, for noncommerical purposes, and only so long as attribution is given.1Language based on Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
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