Science and Technology

 

Cyber Brief: Cyber and the Insurrection, One Year Later

Washington, D.C., January 6, 2022 - On the first anniversary of the January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol, a review of government materials by the National Security Archive’s Cyber Vault project shows the double-edged impact of social media during the episode.  While the Internet played a large role in the planning and execution of the riot, as well as creating various cybersecurity risks, it also enormously facilitated subsequent investigations.  At the same time, its use in surveillance by government agencies has been

BALTIC GHOST: Supporting NATO in Cyberspace

Washington, D.C., December 6, 2021 — This week, as NATO concludes its annual flagship cyber exercise, Cyber Coalition 21, newly declassified documents detail American collaboration with NATO allies to dissuade and impede Russian advances, both in cyberspace and in European territory. The recently released materials feature after action reports (AARs) and planning documents concerning the BALTIC GHOST series of cyber exercises.

Cyber Brief: U.S. Biometric Devices Captured by Taliban, According to Report

Washington D.C., August 20, 2021 - As the world observes the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan, the subsequent collapse of the Afghan government and the resurgence of the Taliban, it will also likely witness the targeting and persecution of thousands of Afghans, aided by U.S.-collected biometrics. In a report from The Intercept, a current U.S. military official and former U.S.

Cyber Brief: After Colonial Pipeline, DHS: Less Advice, More Rules

Washington D.C., July 23, 2021 - Earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) had released a second set of pipeline cybersecurity regulations, requiring “owners and operators of TSA-designated critical pipelines that transport hazardous liquids and natural gas to implement a number of urgently needed protections against cyberintrusions.” This directive, preceded by an emergency pipeline cybersecurity directive issued in May, follows the ransomware attack on

U.S.-Soviet Cooperation in Outer Space, Part 2: From Shuttle-Mir to the International Space Station

Washington, D.C., May 7, 2021 – U.S.-Soviet cooperation in space was a regular, if less noticed, feature of the final years of the USSR and continued well after the emergence of independent Russia, a compilation of declassified documents and interviews posted today by the National Security Archive underscores.  In the second of a two-part posting, records from Russian and American archives highlight the successes of joint operations ranging from the Shuttle-Mir program to the International Space Station. 

A Diplomatic Domain? The Evolution of Diplomacy in Cyberspace

Washington, D.C., April 26, 2021 — The recent passage of the “Cyber Diplomacy Act of 2021” by the House of Representatives suggests U.S. lawmakers are eager to expand the U.S.’s toolbox for addressing cyber threats to explicitly include diplomacy, according to a compilation of policy records posted today by the nongovernmental National Security Archive.  Introduced on the heels of the SolarWinds breach, the bill would establish a new “Bureau of International Cyberspace Policy.”

U.S.-Soviet Cooperation in Outer Space, Part 1: From Yuri Gagarin to Apollo-Soyuz

Washington, D.C., April 12, 2021 – Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s historic spaceflight 60 years ago, which made him the first human in space, prompted President John F. Kennedy to advance an unusual proposal – that the two superpowers combine forces to cooperate in space.  In a congratulatory letter to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, posted today by the nongovernmental National Security Archive, Kennedy expressed the hope that “our nations [can] work together” in the “continuing quest for knowledge of outer space.”  

U.S.-Cuba: Secrets of the 'Havana Syndrome'

Washington D.C., February 10, 2021 – The Trump administration’s response to the mysterious health episodes experienced by intelligence and diplomatic personnel in Havana, Cuba, in late 2016 and 2017 was plagued by mismanagement, poor leadership, lack of coordination, and a failure to follow established procedures, according to a formerly secret internal State Department review posted today by the National Security Archive.  “The Department of State’s response to these incidents was characterized by a lack of senior leadership, ineffective communications, and systemic disorg