Why Trump Security Pick Wants to Make Cyber Attackers 'Pay'
The US has experienced a significant year in 2024, in political news by a notable comeback from Donald Trump and in the cybersphere by the alarming rise in cyber attacks targeting American companies and government infrastructure.
But how do these developments interconnect? One of Trump's key national security appointments, Representative Mike Waltz, has articulated a need for the US to adopt a more aggressive stance against cyber attackers.
"We need to start going on the offense and start imposing, I think, higher costs and consequences to private actors and nation-state actors that continue to steal our data, that continue to spy on us," Mike said.
Contextualising cybersecurity developments
While he did not provide specific details on the proposed measures, his comments signal a shift towards a more offensive cybersecurity strategy amid recent events that have underscored vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure in the country.
Already, the Biden administration has been proactive in addressing cybersecurity challenges, particularly following significant incidents that have shaken public confidence in the resilience of essential services.
For instance, American Water, the largest publicly regulated water provider in the US fell victim to a cyber attack that prompted immediate precautionary measures, including shutting down specific systems and suspending customer billing.
In light of these escalating threats, Biden's administration has made cybersecurity resilience a core focus, including issuing an executive order on improving the nation's cybersecurity for crucial infrastructure.
The impact of recent cyber attacks
2024 has already seen some of the most significant cyber attacks in US history, including a high-profile breach involving major telecommunications companies like T-Mobile.
Following revelations that these companies were targeted by Chinese threat actors known as Salt Typhoon, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner labelled it "the worst telecom hack in our nation's history."
This breach allowed hackers to intercept sensitive data related to law enforcement activities and high-profile individuals, raising critical questions about national security and the integrity of communications systems.
Moreover, the healthcare sector has also faced unprecedented challenges due to cyber attacks. The ransomware attack on Change Healthcare resulted in the theft of private health information belonging to over 100 million individuals, marking one of the largest data breaches in history.
"We need to start going on the offense and start imposing, I think, higher costs and consequences to private actors and nation-state actors that continue to steal our data, that continue to spy on us."
This incident highlighted systemic failures within cybersecurity practices at major healthcare providers and underscored the need for stringent security measures across all sectors handling sensitive information.
As investigations into these incidents continue, it is clear that both private companies and government entities must collaborate more effectively to fortify defences against future incursions.
US cyberstrategy going forward
With Trump due to become President in January, we will have to wait to see exactly how his stance differs on cybersecurity from Biden.
However, the President elect has wasted little time making his picks for his administration.
As the US grapples with an increasingly hostile cyber landscape marked by sophisticated attacks from state-sponsored actors and criminal enterprises alike, there is a pressing need for comprehensive reforms in cybersecurity policy.
Whether that will come through great retribution for attacks and how that will work remains to be seen.
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