Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

cipherbrief

Welcome! Log in to stay connected and make the most of your experience.

Input clean

The Cipher Brief: National Security news, analysis and expert commentary.

Sudan’s War Without Borders: How Global Powers Turned Darfur into a Proxy Battleground

Foreign states are arming rival militias in Sudan, fueling one of the world's worst humanitarian crises and reshaping the balance of power across northeast Africa.

Sudan’s War Without Borders: How Global Powers Turned Darfur into a Proxy Battleground

DEEP DIVE — Entire cities in the Darfur region of Sudan have been burned and razed, millions have fled their homes, and unspeakable terror and [...] More

Open Source Report logo

The Open Source Report

24 September 2025, Norway, Oslo: A fighter jet takes off from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford.

Global Intelligence Report for Wednesday, November 12, 2025

Aircraft Carrier Moves Into the Caribbean as U.S. Confronts Venezuela

What the Looming Fall of a Ukrainian City Says About Putin’s War

EU to establish new intelligence unit under Ursula von der Leyen

IDF unveils Hezbollah’s reconstruction map, targets key terror hubs in Lebanon

Access Today’s Report

Expert Insights

Cipher Brief Experts bring context to today’s global events

How America Can Balance Legal Migration with Strong National Security

Ambassador Joseph DeTrani

OPINION — Zohran Mamdani, a Ugandan-born New York State Assembly member, was just elected Mayor of New York City, the largest city in the U.S. We in the U.S. take this for granted that a naturalized U.S. citizen could [...] More

Uncovering the Truth Behind Trump’s Call to Resume Nuclear Testing

Walter Pincus

OPINION — “Nearly 1,000 feet below the Nevada desert, [U.S.] scientists and engineers are conducting groundbreaking nuclear weapons research. Subcritical experiments, or ‘subcrits’ for short, play a crucial role in [...] More

News & Analysis

The Brave New World of Drone Swarms

The Brave New World of Drone Swarms

DEEP DIVE – A drone weapon heads behind enemy lines, on a mission to kill troops and destroy equipment. To its left and right are a dozen other armed [...] More

Opinion

Why Putin Is Losing The War In Ukraine That He Thinks He Is Winning

OPINION — The Russian invasion of Ukraine that began in January 2022 is now approaching its fourth year. The cost for Ukraine has been very high, but [...] More

What’s on The Cipher Brief’s Digital Channel

Book Reviews

CONVERTING UNIFORMS TO UPLOADS: Turns out the military isn’t just about drills and deployments anymore. Business Insider recently ran a three-part series about some military members making more from their side hustles of TikTok dances and viral videos than they get from Uncle Sam. The appropriateness and legality of some of this stuff is a bit fuzzy. But we can understand the attraction of the side gig. YouTube is not as likely as the feds of threatening to withhold your paychecks, after all. The latest article notes that “Military guidelines prohibit advertisements, but don't address newer ways influencers can make money [...] More

Get The Drop

Events

Live Events

The Cipher Brief 2026 HONORS Awards

The Cipher Brief 2026 HONORS Awards

Join us for the third annual Cipher Brief Honors Dinner, the evening of March 13, 2026. This Black-Tie event is invite only, please apply here for a [...] More

Upcoming: 13 March, 2026

Podcasts

State Secrets


Cipher Brief CEO & Publisher Suzanne Kelly talks with two former directors of the National Security Agency and former Commanders of U.S. Cyber Command about the cyber threat from China, and just what they think Americans need to know. Retired General Tim Haugh – a new Cipher Brief Expert, spoke recently about the threat with 60 Minutes. He is now also working with investors and teaching at Yale University. And retired General Paul Nakasone is the founding director of the Institute for National Security at Vanderbilt University. Both men have a serious warning for America.

Cover Stories: Spies, Books & Entertainment


David McCloskey, former CIA Analyst turned novelist is out with his fourth book, The Persian, about an Iranian dentist who is recruited by Mossad to take on a dangerous mission inside Iran. Cover Stories Host Suzanne Kelly digs in on how McCloskey’s real-life Intelligence background fueled his latest novel, and discovers a few of McCloskey’s own secrets along the way.