US Efforts to Strengthen Cyberspaces and National Security

In recent years, the role of technology in people’s daily lives has been continuously expanding. Smartphones in particular have had a significant impact. With the transition to the Internet of Things (IoT) era, home appliances such as refrigerators and dishwashers will soon also be connected to the internet. Even government records and services depend heavily on technology as more and more of society’s infrastructures are becoming more reliant on advanced computing and communication systems. Taking these into consideration, the importance of securing the internet has become more important than ever before.

As the Internet has become more ingrained in society, the occurrence of cybercrimes has also seen an increase in the past years. These cybercrimes come in the form of illegally accessing or destroying sensitive information, extorting money, and disrupting business processes among others.

Cybercrimes are not by any means new. The first occurrence of cyberattacks can be traced to the 1970s when hackers at the time exploited early telephone hardware to make calls for free. As new technologies arose, so did new crimes that made use of these advancements began to appear. During the past twenty years, an exponential increase in cybercrimes was seen. In 2018 alone, 445.6 Million accounts of compromised data were recorded in the United States.

In response to these new threats to national security, the White House released the National Cyber Strategy of the United States of America which President Donald Trump described as “the first fully articulated cybersecurity strategy for the United States since 2003.” The new strategy focuses on deterring government adversaries through cybersecurity strength. In this paper, the importance of cybersecurity, its effects on politics and the United States’ strategy to combat cyberattacks will be discussed.

Information Infrastructures and National Security

The relation between information systems and national security was first established in the military domain over 70 years ago. Specifically, early computers were adopted to decipher military code systems employed by adversaries during the Second World War. During those years, advancements in information technologies were considered as main driving forces rather than possible sources of vulnerabilities. Data during this time were stored on paper cards that had holes punched in.

However, that changed during the late 1970s when data storage and transfers through telephone lines started to take place. Consequently, this meant that criminals could now gain access to such data without the need for physical access. As the internet began its rapid expansion in the 1990s, more criminals have begun to explore the possibilities for cybercrimes.

The further development of the internet and other communication systems have led to the transition of the United States and other countries to an information society. Accordingly, these systems have become targets by organized crime groups, and has signalled the start of the information warfare era. Given the heavy reliance of enterprises and public institutions on such technologies, targeting these information spaces could be disastrous for society.

Subsequently, the internet has set the stage for cyber warfare. States now see cyberspace as a warfield, and are constantly developing new ways to attack adversaries and strategies to defend against them. Furthermore, cyber attacks can be carried out against a country even if the two countries are not actively at war.

Cybersecurity in World Politics

During the past years, state-sponsored cyber attacks have been on the rise. These crimes have been targeting private and public institutions all over the world. Since there is no internationally established framework on sanctioning cyber attacks, states such as China, Russia and North Korea carry out attacks on a regular basis.

China, in particular, has been accused of carrying out attacks on American institutions since 1999. The Chinese have targeted US technology companies, among others, to steal intellectual property. Furthermore, their hackers have been reported of hacking American media agencies that have reported on Chinese leaders and companies.

On the other hand, Russian hackers have also been found guilty of launching cyberattacks on the US. A Report finds that election systems were targeted by Russia in 2016, and all 50 states were compromised. However, there was no proof that any of the votes were tampered despite the Russian hackers were in a position to do such things. It is apparent that states are continuously exploiting cybersecurity to gain national interests.

Timeline of Attacks on US Cybersecurity

The US cyberspace has been targeted by hackers and organized criminals since the 1990s. However, it was in the early 2000s when foreign state-funded hackers have begun to consistently launch assault the US cyberspace. During this time, it was realized that attack on information technology structures could be as lethal as a city being bombed.

In 1998, systems in the US Department of Defense were determined to have been penetrated. It was later found out that the attack was traced to the former Soviet Union, but Russia denies any involvement in the attack. Subsequently, a series of attacks on American computer systems in 2003 was recorded to be of Chinese origin. However, the purpose for the attacks remain to be unknown.

In 2006, the United States’ high tech agencies suffered hacking from foreign intruders. The Department of State’s computer networks were compromised, and terabytes of information were reportedly downloaded. Simultaneously, the House of Commons computer system was determined to be shut down by a group of Chinese hackers. The Pentagon announced in April 2009 that they had spent more than $100 million for repairing damages incurred from cyber attacks.

The assault on cybersecurity had only gotten worse from this point. In 2010, the US warned the public for the first time about Chinese hackers breaking into American enterprises and government agencies. It can be observed that the majority of these attacks are carried out by Chinese and Russian state actors, and the trend of these hackers targeting US-based information systems continued well into the present. However, up until the present, the federal government has been having a hard time deterring attacks in cyberspace.

The US Government’s Strategy to Combat Cyberattacks

The United States, as an economic superpower, depends greatly on the internet and is highly vulnerable to cyberattacks. As a matter of fact, many US private and public organizations have been a victim of attacks carried by foreign states as mentioned earlier. In turn, the US Department of Defense, in conjunction with other government agencies, have been actively developing methods to deter attackers of national security.

However, the US does not simply defend itself from cyberattacks, as it had also reportedly launched assaults on other nations. An example of these is the “possible” cyberattack of the US on Russia’s electrical grid despite lack of official confirmation from the White House. Additionally, the US has also allegedly launched attacks on China and Iran.

A New Cyber Strategy

In September 2018, the White House released the National Cyber Strategy of the United States of America which was described as “the first fully articulated cybersecurity strategy for the United States since 2003.” The new strategy focuses on deterring government adversaries through cybersecurity strength. The new plan of action has four main pillars of priority.

Pillar I: Protect the American people, the homeland, and the American way of life. The federal government aims to combat cybercrime by securing federal networks and critical infrastructure. Furthermore, the oversight of civilian cybersecurity will be centralized through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This is in conjunction with the prioritization of research and development for addressing risks to critical government infrastructure.

Pillar II: Promote American prosperity. The US will demonstrate the values of freedom, security and prosperity. Furthermore, they will lead in incentivizing an adaptable and secure technology marketplace while promoting the free flow of data across borders.

Pillar III: Preserve peace through strength. The Trump administration will enforce transformative policies that will protect the American people. Similarly, the United States plans to uphold a framework that promotes responsible state behavior, and encourage adherence to these norms. Furthermore, the US will plan out concrete consequences to deter future bad behavior.

Pillar IV: Advance American influence. The objective of this pillar is to preserve the openness and security of the internet to foster advances in national infrastructure such as public health, communications and commerce. Thus, to achieve this goal, the US will work with like-minded countries and industries to promote and internet that is reliable and secure.

Further Steps

In a move to uphold US national security, the Trump administration in May 2019 has decided to ban a list of Chinese firms from buying US information and communication technologies. Included in the trading blacklist is Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei. Huawei currently is the second largest smartphone manufacturer with 16% of the world’s smartphone market share.

Huawei was accused by the US of spying for the Chinese government. As the world’s leading manufacturer of telecommunication equipment, Huawei certainly has the capability of spying for China. Consequently, this is the reason why the US government has imposed a ban on the use of Huawei network infrastructure in the country since 2012. In addition to the trade ban, the US has also been keen in pressuring other countries to cease using Huawei’s communication technologies due to suspicion of routing network traffic to China.

Conclusion

The recent advancements in information technology has been constantly improving mankind’s quality of life. Smartphones and computers, in particular, have made communication and access to information easier than ever before. However, these technologies also carry a risk on security since these complex devices can be exploited to work against their intended functions. Thus, as discussed in the previous paragraphs, organized criminals have been taking advantage of the vulnerabilities of modern technology to achieve their national interests.

As a world leader in information technology, the US has been taking concrete steps to tackle the issue of cyber warfare with other states. It is very likely that the cases of hacking and other cybercrimes will continue in the future. However, the government must take the necessary actions to prevent a national crisis before foreign state hackers can wreak havoc into the US cyberspace. While reinforced technical expertise would seem to be the obvious solution to these problems, state policy is also important in combating assaults on national security.

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