Dr. Herb Lin is senior research scholar for cyber policy and security at the Center for International Security and Cooperation and Hank J. Holland Fellow in Cyber Policy and Security at the Hoover Institution, both at Stanford University. His research interests relate broadly to policy-related dimensions of cybersecurity and cyberspace, and he is particularly interested in and knowledgeable about the use of offensive operations in cyberspace, especially as instruments of national policy. In addition to his positions at Stanford University, he is Chief Scientist, Emeritus for the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies, where he served from 1990 through 2014 as study director of major projects on public policy and information technology, and Adjunct Senior Research Scholar and Senior Fellow in Cybersecurity (not in residence) at the Saltzman Institute for War and Peace Studies in the School for International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. Prior to his NRC service, he was a professional staff member and staff scientist for the House Armed Services Committee (1986-1990), where his portfolio included defense policy and arms control issues. He received his doctorate in physics from MIT.
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Although the strategy builds on cybersecurity efforts from the previous three administrations, it departs from past perspectives and practices and, if fully implemented, has the potential to change the U.S. cybersecurity posture significantly for the better.
To rectify the widespread overclassification of government documents, policymakers might consider charging agencies for each decision to classify information.
Quantum computing will reveal old secrets once thought to be forever secure. What then?
Real cybersecurity involves trade-offs in functional requirements.
Physical violence against personnel in lawless environments as an element of cyberattack is another dimension of cyber conflict, and its importance has been neglected for way too long.
Concerns about changes to the U.S. policy on offensive cyber operations raise an interesting and important question about the balance of power between the White House and the Department of Defense. But this is a poor framing of the problem.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the Aspen Institute’s recent report on the dangers of information disorder—and a few additional suggestions.