China The escalation of cyberattacks, amplified by rapid advances in artificial intelligence, is significantly raising the stakes on the global cybersecurity stage. This convergence poses unprecedented threats to our national security, our economic prosperity, our democratic values and the very stability of American society.
We are now fully immersed in the cyber age. It is imperative that U.S. policymakers act accordingly to strengthen our cyber defenses and safeguard our future.
Over the past year, we have seen a massive escalation in the scale and sophistication of Chinese cyberattacks. Just a few weeks ago, we learned that a sophisticated Chinese hacker group known as Salt Typhoon had launched a “historically important and disturbing» attack that compromised American Internet service providers. This breach exposed tens of millions of Americans and myriad businesses to potential surveillance. It also compromised our intelligence networks, revealing how we track criminals and protect against national security threats.
This disturbing revelation comes shortly after we learned of the “Typhoon Volt» campaign – an operation carried out by Chinese state-sponsored hackers to access and burrow into US critical infrastructure, such as power grids, airports and even water treatment facilities. Chris Wray, Director of the FBI warned that these agents preposition themselves to disrupt critical systems in the event of future conflict, effectively preparing to inflict “real world harm» on American citizens. In this situation, a reactive strategy cannot be an option.
The economic implications are already alarming. China’s theft of intellectual property is siphoning off more than 500 billion dollars of the American economy each year. As former director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, William Evanina said News week, this equates to “taking between $4,000 and $6,000 a year for every family of four in America.”
But China’s cyber aggression is only half the problem.
At the same time, we are also in the midst of what is clearly an AI revolution. Not only is this new technology changing the way we live and work, it is also fundamentally reshaping the cybersecurity landscape. AI-based tools empower both defenders and attackers. On the one hand, AI improves our ability to detect and respond to threats. But on the other hand, it also allows adversaries to launch more sophisticated, automated, persistent and destructive attacks. For example, attackers are now using chatbots and AI tools to create personalized phishing emails that are more convincing and harder to recognize.
The combination of these two forces, China’s cyberaggression and advances in AI, creates a perfect storm that threatens not only our national security, but also the very foundations of our economic prosperity and societal order.
Addressing this dual threat requires a national approach to ensure America leads in emerging technologies, including in a diversity of AI models, such as open source. And we must be clear that the American government cannot meet this challenge alone. If we want to stay ahead of the curve and truly protect America’s cyberspace, we will need to rely on private sector partners.
Fortunately, the United States is home to the world’s brightest entrepreneurs and most innovative technology companies. These innovators are not just economic powerhouses; they form the backbone of our national cybersecurity.
In March, IBM opened a new “Cyber X-Force range» headquarters to train U.S. federal agencies and critical infrastructure organizations in cyber defense. Meanwhile, Meta works with security officials to identify and counter foreign disinformation campaigns. And in a recent interview with the The Wall Street JournalGeneral Timothy Haugh revealed that U.S. Cyber Command, the National Security Agency, and more than 1,000 defense-related companies work together daily to identify, deter, and respond to emerging cyber threats.
However, some politicians and policymakers want to impose new laws and regulations aimed at breaking up the innovators who are the foundation of our cybersecurity infrastructure.
Policymakers need to understand that imposing excessive restrictions on our most innovative companies, including handcuffing their competitive strategies or even forcing them to share sensitive data, is not a good approach.
America’s technology companies play an indispensable role in fostering innovation, equipping the U.S. government with elite tools at scale, enabling progress, and protecting our nation. In fact, the six largest US tech companies are investing more in research and development than the entire Pentagon. When the stakes are such that the country that loses the cybersecurity advantage is unlikely to regain it, we cannot afford to handcuff our strongest and most important partners in this fight.
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Instead, let’s focus on encouraging innovation and promoting collaboration between government and the tech industry. A united front is essential to countering the cyber threats we face and positioning the United States to lead the way in developing AI and the next generation of revolutionary technologies.
The future of America’s security and economic prosperity depends on it.
Chris Carney represented Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District for two terms and previously worked at the Pentagon for four years on strategic analysis of the global terrorism threat. He is currently a senior policy advisor at Nossaman LLP in Washington, DC and a member of the advisory board of the American Edge Project (AEP).
