1 21 2020 How a Military Cyber Operation to Disrupt Islamic State Spurred a Debate How a Military Cyber Operation to Disrupt Islamic State Spurred a Debate WSJ https www wsj com articles how-a-military-cyber-operation-to-disrupt-islamicstate-spurred-a-debate-11579604400 · by Dustin Volz Officials including Army Gen Paul Nakasone who leads U S Cyber Command and the National Security Agency have pointed to Glowing Symphony as a precursor to efforts to deter Russian election interference Photo Evan Vucci Associated Press By Dustin Volz Jan 21 2020 6 00 am ET A once-secret U S military cyber operation launched during the last year of the Obama administration to disrupt Islamic State’s online presence underwent a delayed rollout due to interagency disagreements about the clandestine mission according to newly released government documents and former U S officials https www instapaper com read 1270342604 1 5 1 21 2020 How a Military Cyber Operation to Disrupt Islamic State Spurred a Debate Operation Glowing Symphony initiated in late 2016 prompted at least one unidentified government agency to issue a formal “non-concur” opinion disputing either the scope or necessity of the planned attack according to internal documents written by U S Cyber Command The disagreements the substance of which weren’t disclosed were elevated to senior leadership within the Obama administration and eventually resolved but the process impeded the operation from going forward as originally conceived the documents show The declassified files from late 2016 and early 2017 were obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests by the National Security Archive a nonprofit group associated with George Washington University that advocates for greater government transparency and were reviewed by The Wall Street Journal ahead of their public release The length and significance of the delay in the operation couldn’t be determined But frustration with the process that led up to Glowing Symphony became a motivating factor within the Trump administration to overhaul Obama-era rules requiring elaborate interagency consultation before the Pentagon could pursue offensive cyber engagement current and former officials said A new set of classified rules https www wsj com articles white-houseconfirms-it-has-relaxed-rules-on-u-s-use-of-cyber-weapons-1537476729 mod article_inline implemented by President Trump in 2018 have streamlined the process for deploying cyber weapons and require less interagency review Though they contain substantial redactions the internal documents—marked as top secret—present a rare look at the U S military’s use of cyber weapons a domain of conflict that is largely classified and has mostly played out beyond public view They contain partially redacted lessons learned from Glowing https www instapaper com read 1270342604 2 5 1 21 2020 How a Military Cyber Operation to Disrupt Islamic State Spurred a Debate Symphony that helped influence the development of U S Cyber Command when the recently formed military unit was seeking to engage more forcefully and in tandem with traditional military operations One Cyber Command document a review of the first 30 days of the operation said that the time needed to address the non-concurs “prevented USCYBERCOM from redacted as originally designed ” Another document reviewing the operation after 120 days states “Absent significant policy changes from the Office of the Secretary of Defense USCYBERCOM is limited in its ability to challenge ISIS ” Other passages in the newly disclosed files state that the operation was generally successful The documents also refer to Glowing Symphony as “the most complex offensive cyberspace operation USCYBERCOM has conducted to date ” Officials including Army Gen Paul Nakasone who leads U S Cyber Command and the National Security Agency have pointed to Glowing Symphony as a precursor to efforts to deter Russian election interference in the 2018 midterms and preparations to do so again during the 2020 presidential election cycle Glowing Symphony was part of a broader campaign to use cyber capabilities to disrupt Islamic State online where some defense and intelligence officials believed the terrorist group posed the greatest direct danger to the U S The terrorist group was widely viewed to have pioneering success in recruiting converts living in the U S and Europe by spreading viral propaganda such as glorified battlefield videos on social media and then engaging potential sympathizers through private messaging channels Former officials involved in the planning discussions surrounding Operation Symphony stressed that it raised significant and novel legal and policy questions including how disrupting Islamic State propaganda efforts could undermine https www instapaper com read 1270342604 3 5 1 21 2020 How a Military Cyber Operation to Disrupt Islamic State Spurred a Debate other allied efforts to quietly glean information about the group’s operations They said interagency debates were a necessity for an operation of such magnitude “It was not a ‘go or not go thing ’ but it was about the scope of the operation ” one former official said “In some cases it was a classic debate of collect vs destroy ” The planning also provoked strident debate at the senior cabinet level about whether the U S government needed to notify allies particularly Germany if the cyber operations targeted computer services hosted within their borders that Islamic State had been using former officials said The documents make a cryptic reference surrounded by heavily redacted passages to an unidentified adversary that “exploited” an unspecified opportunity related to Glowing Symphony Later on the same page the document continues “It would be ill-advised to risk critical infrastructure and or capabilities unnecessarily ” A Cyber Command spokesman declined to comment about the passage or about whether a third-party adversary such as Russia or Syria may have had visibility into U S cyber operations against Islamic State Previous disclosures of internal documents about Operation Glowing Symphony have reflected bureaucratic concerns about it being identified and attributed to the U S Write to Dustin Volz at dustin volz@wsj com mailto dustin volz@wsj com Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones Company Inc All Rights Reserved 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8 https www instapaper com read 1270342604 4 5 1 21 2020 How a Military Cyber Operation to Disrupt Islamic State Spurred a Debate WSJ https www wsj com articles how-a-military-cyber-operation-to-disrupt-islamicstate-spurred-a-debate-11579604400 · by Dustin Volz https www instapaper com read 1270342604 5 5