The Global Divide Over the 5G National Security Risk
Fresh off the heels of the Munich security conference, a rift remains between the U.S. and its allies over their approach to 5G networks and […] More
national security
Four Big Takeaways from the Munich Security Conference
The Cipher Brief asked expert and retired four-star General David Petraeus for his big takeaways after attending last weekend’s Munich Security Conference. First, the wedge between […] More
I Was in the CIA. Trump’s Petty Fights and Insults Will Make Us All Less Safe.
Steven Hall spent more than 30 years in the CIA, the bulk of them running and managing intelligence operations in Eurasia and Latin America. He […] More
False Flags in Cyberspace: Targeting Public Opinion and Political Will
Bottom Line: In the digital age, determining the origins of cyberattacks is already difficult, but cyber actors can further muddy attribution by diverting blame for […] More
The Special Operations Mission: A View from the Hill
It’s been a busy national security week in DC. Congressional lawmakers and the President managed to reach a deal that would fund the government but […] More
The Serious Trust Deficit Between Washington and Pyongyang
OPINION — Two senior U.S. military commanders in the Indo-Pacific area this week questioned whether North Korea would ever denuclearize, just 12 days before the next […] More
A State Without Territory
Bottom Line Up Front On February 10, U.S.-backed forces surrounded the Syrian town of Baghouz Al-Fawqani, the ‘last’ remaining stronghold of the so-called Islamic […] More
SOF Leader’s Advice For Reaching Full Potential
The Cipher Brief’s new Friday column, ‘Cipher Select’ talks with retired Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Rob Lively, who spent 28 years in the U.S. Army, […] More
The Islamic Revolution’s Impact on Political Islam and the Middle East
Cipher Brief Expert Emile Nakhleh is a retired CIA Senior Intelligence Service Officer and founding director of the CIA’s Political Islam Strategic Analysis Program Office. […] More
The U.S. Has Abandoned Leadership of the Internet
A hundred years from now historians will write that one of America’s greatest contributions to the world was the Internet. Though other countries and foreign […] More
The Quickly Spreading Global Cyber Threat
Cyber has quickly become the global threat that knows no borders, nor does it distinguish between the public and private sectors. Executives from the world’s […] More
Profile: Tackling the NSA’s Innovation Challenge
Innovation in Government isn’t generally a phrase that rolls off the tongue, but in a relatively unconstrained threat environment, innovation has become synonymous with survival. […] More
The Trust But Verify Strategy with North Korea
OPINION — The “tremendous progress” with North Korea that President Trump has repeatedly claimed does not approach the success that Kim Jong Un has achieved, […] More
Project Raven Raises Big Concerns
It’s difficult to feel anything other than disappointment after reading Reuter’s investigation of activities by a U.S. contractor in the UAE. The allegations that former NSA […] More
Designate IRGC’s Quds Force as a Foreign Terrorist Organization
Last month, the U.S. Department of State marked the 35th anniversary of the U.S. designation of Iran as a state-sponsor of terrorism. Tehran is part of […] More
4 Terrorism Questions for former NCTC Director Nicholas Rasmussen
This week’s release of the Intelligence Community’s unclassified Worldwide Threat Assessment made clear which groups the IC believes pose the greatest terrorist threats to the […] More
The Terrorist Threat to the U.S. Homeland
As part of the U.S. Intelligence Community’s Worldwide Threat Assessment this week, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence […] More
How to Kill Off A Withering Terrorist Organization
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats released the Worldwide Threat Assessment on Tuesday, with Intelligence Community leaders briefing Senators on the biggest threats facing the […] More