Improving Mexican Policing
Being abducted by gunmen, held for weeks or months in horrific conditions and then forced to pay colossal sums to be freed has been the […] More
News & Analysis
Protecting Your Business
The Cipher Brief spoke with Francisco Quiñones, the founder of Arcis International, a security, risk management, and crisis response consultancy based in Washington, DC. Quinones, […] More
The Changing Threat in Mexico
The Cipher Brief spoke with retired DEA agent Michael Vigil to discuss the security situation in Mexico. Vigil, who served as DEA’s Chief of International […] More
North Africa: Instability Increasing
Four years after the Arab Spring, the security environment across North Africa remains dire. Access all of The Cipher Brief’s national security-focused expert insight […] More
Social Unrest Disrupting Energy Sector
After having been idled by sit-ins for four years, Tunisia’s state-owned phosphate mines are open again. Why they closed was just one example of a […] More
North Africa: Greater Risk in the Near Term
The Cipher Brief sat down with Haim Malka, the Deputy Director of and Senior Fellow for the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic […] More
What Iran Really Wants
So what if Iran isn’t planning to build an actual nuclear weapon? Would that affect your take on the nuclear deal? I mean it. […] More
The Tip of the Iceberg
President Barack Obama will be the first sitting U.S. President to visit Alaska’s Arctic region when he begins a three day trip to the state […] More
The New Battlefield
It helps in thinking about the future of cyber war if we break it into two parts: the future of cyber and the future of […] More
Creating a Culture of Cyber Security
The Cipher Brief spoke with Dr. Paulo Shakarian, the author of Introduction to Cyber-Warfare, about the future of cyber war. Dr. Shakarain runs Arizona State […] More
Investing in Your Own Defense
The Cipher Brief spoke with Rob Knake, the former Director for Cyber Security Policy at the National Security Council (2011-2015), about the future of cyber […] More
Towards a Clear Deterrence Strategy
The Cipher spoke with Frank Cilluffo, who runs George Washington University’s Center for Cyber and Homeland Security, to discuss the U.S. government’s cyber security posture. […] More
The Convergence of Crime and Terror
The security of U.S. borders has become one of the key issues in the U.S. Presidential race. Some of the Republican candidates support building a […] More
The Billion Dollar Spy: An Interview with Author David Hoffman
The Cipher Brief sat down with David Hoffman to discuss his new book, The Billion Dollar Spy. He gave us his thoughts on storytelling and […] More
The Dead Drop
Got a secret, can you keep it? Welcome to the The Dead Drop. Access all of The Cipher Brief’s national security-focused expert insight by becoming […] More
The Value of Human Intelligence
The Cipher Brief sat down with Rob Richer, the CIA’s former Associate Deputy Director for Operations, to talk about the evolution of espionage and the value […] More
Review: CIA’s Most Valuable Spy
For years, when I was asked to describe the intensity of the relationship between a CIA handler and his/her foreign sources, I would often refer […] More
Rio de Janeiro Moves to Ban Uber, Threatens Sharing Economy
One of the most controversial companies operating globally may be Uber, and it came under attack most recently on Tuesday in Rio de Janeiro, where […] More