Institute for Security and Technology (IST)

On October 22 and 1 pm EST, IST and Tech, Law & Security Program at American University Washington College of Law will host stakeholders from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Department of Justice, Microsoft and more for an afternoon of discussion on utilizing public-private partnerships to disrupt cyber threats. Can’t make it? 🔗 Register on Zoom: https://lnkd.in/gTHaRpQH

This Cybersecurity Awareness Month, how are you protecting your small business? IST Future of Digital Security Associate Trevaughn Smith recommends beginning with small, cost-effective steps that make all the difference in a #cyber attack.  Find more #cybersecurity resources for small business owners in Tre’s August 2024 blog, where he reintroduces the RTF’s Blueprint for Ransomware Defense and breaks down core #cybersecurity concepts, critical Safeguards and defensive measures. 🛡️ Read “Prepare, Don’t Pay: A Quick-Start Guide to Defending Against Ransomware:” https://lnkd.in/gQKn_Fri

Alleged ransomware actors behind bars! 🚨💪🛡️ Earlier this month, 4 people linked to the LockBit ransomware group were arrested. The arrests flow from efforts under Operation Cronos, which brings together law enforcement agencies from 12 countries, including Gendarmerie Nationale, the National Crime Agency (NCA), and Guardia Civil , in collaboration with Europol and Eurojust. Those arrested include a suspected developer of Lockbit and the administrator of a bulletproof hosting service. Alongside the arrests, law enforcement seized nine servers used for bulletproof hosting, a critical component of LockBit’s Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) infrastructure. The Ransomware Task Force welcomes this action, as these disruptive efforts align with multiple recommendations first put forward by the #RansomwareTaskForce in the foundational April 2021 report:  🔺2.2: Target the infrastructure used by ransomware criminals 🔺2.3: Disrupt the threat actors, including ransomware developers, criminal affiliates, and ransomware variants 🔺2.3.1: Increase government sharing of ransomware intelligence 🔗 Learn more about the arrests & sanctions: https://lnkd.in/e_Fi7-iN 🛡️ Read the #RansomwareTaskForce’s original 48 recommendations calling for a comprehensive framework for action to reduce the ransomware threat: https://lnkd.in/eNvZkMx

Congratulations to #RansomwareTaskForce co-chair and Cyber Threat Alliance president and CEO J. Michael Daniel for being named a DC Tech Titan by the Washingtonian Magazine! As a co-chair, Michael has been an integral part of the RTF’s efforts since 2021 and continues to play a crucial role in Ransomware Task Force implementation and impact. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/geiFfCEg

On October 1, IST CEO Philip Reiner attended the 7th annual US-India Conference, an event  focused on the future of US-India relations in trade and technology, co-hosted by the All India Management Association (AIMA) and the University of California, Santa Cruz. Philip joined a panel on the shifting geopolitical roles of Asia, the U.S., and India. 🇮🇳 During his session, Philip emphasized the importance of strategic cooperation to maintain stability in the region, calling on leading democracies such as the United States and India to do their part. This echoes India’s Minister of External Affairs Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar’s recent statement: "If we are to ensure global security and stability, it is essential that those who seek to lead set the right example." He also noted that U.S. policies do recognize the US-India partnership as vital, particularly in countering the influence of a dominant China, fostering a free and open Indo-Pacific, and supporting countries in standing up to Chinese pressures through defense and security cooperation. As the world faces intensifying challenges, it is imperative to find means for collaboration to reduce violence and avoid catastrophe - much of which can come through expanded and enhanced technological collaboration such as mutual risks from AI and its impact on national security. 🌐 Learn more about IST’s efforts in the field of Innovation and Catastrophic Risk: https://lnkd.in/gqFK__Ne  

This Cybersecurity Awareness Month, IST Senior Associate for Artificial Intelligence Security Policy Mariami Tkeshelashvili is helping #secureourworld by raising awareness on the risks associated with #AI foundation models and paving the way for actionable strategies.  The risks associated with AI foundation models are explored in the latest report from IST’s AI Foundation Model Access Initiative report, which introduced a novel framework for addressing the complex risks associated with AI. 🧠 Read “A Lifecycle Approach to AI Risk Reduction: Tackling the Risk of Malicious Use Amid Implications of Openness:” https://lnkd.in/gs2wabdY

On Monday, IST Deputy Director for Digital Security Taylor Grossman attended a tabletop exercise convened by IST and Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre, bringing together a team of cross-industry experts to identify and target weak points in the #ransomware payment ecosystem. Thanks to all who participated!

Excited to collaborate with Pav Singh on a new paper on how the U.S. government can commercialize more technology faster by understanding better the incentives of the venture capital industry. Unlocking hundreds of billions of dollars in venture funding supports commercialization of technologies important for U.S. economic and national security. Thank you to the Institute of Security and Technology for their support and publishing this work. #nationalsecurity #defensetech Institute for Security and Technology (IST) Shield Capital Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Hoover Institution, Stanford University Stanford Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation Center for a New American Security (CNAS) https://lnkd.in/gTZZXT34

🚀 Honored to speak at the UNDP Arab Regional Consultation for the Human Development Report 2025 Event on their "Digitization and its Influence on Governance and Trust" Panel 🚀 🧠 Key points from my talk: 1️⃣ Good Governance as the Foundation for AI Development: Good governance is essential to steer AI development responsibly. This requires collaborative frameworks that unite regulators, technologists, and civil society to create AI systems that are ethical, human-centric, and secure. Governments have a role not only in regulating AI but also in actively contributing to innovation by shaping AI solutions that benefit society. AI innovation can also become a multiplier for good governance, if harnessed effectively. 2️⃣ Challenges and Opportunities for AI in the Middle East: In the Middle East, countries like Lebanon face significant challenges due to fragmented innovation ecosystems and limited infrastructure, which prevent them from fully leveraging AI’s potential. Building AI literacy and capacity is critical to ensuring that all countries can participate in AI-driven growth, rather than becoming vulnerable to exploitation by bad actors. 3️⃣ Bridging Policy and Innovation to Maximize Impact: To maximize the benefits of AI, we need collaboration between policymakers and innovators. This can be achieved by creating spaces where they can work together, sharing knowledge to address both the opportunities and risks of AI. Aligning incentives will be key to fostering an environment where innovation thrives while ensuring that ethical and safety standards are maintained. Special thanks to Tehmina Akhtar, Yasmine Hamdar, Arkan El Seblani and UNDP for inviting me to be a part of this really important event, and for the opportunity to engage with thought leaders doing critical work on digitization in the region.

How can the U.S. realize disruptive national capabilities and establish technological leadership in the geostrategic competition with China? From IST’s Strategic Balancing Initiative, a new report calls for harnessing the power of the venture capital industry to unlock innovation and offers insights for policymakers and practitioners.  In “Why Venture Capital is Indispensable for U.S. Industrial Strategy: Activating Investors to Realize Disruptive National Capabilities,” IST Senior Fellows Michael A. Brown and Pavneet Singh illuminate the pivotal role VC can have in U.S. industrial strategy. The authors advocate for the United States to be proactive in attracting capital for commercialization of deep tech: to “prevail and prosper, the U.S. government needs an industrial strategy for commercializing all of the critical tech—not just the most financially lucrative ones like software.” In order to align U.S. national technology priorities with venture capital incentives, the paper makes 5 recommendations: 1️⃣ Prioritize Promising Federal Research for Commercial Development 2️⃣ Cultivate an Entrepreneurial Founding Team 3️⃣ Create Transparency for the Federal Total Addressable Market (TAM) 4️⃣ Demonstrate Technology Maturity 5️⃣ Develop a Public Capital Framework “By providing the right incentives to attract venture capital in developing the highest priority tech for national security, the U.S can activate investor appetite…the industry will finance and support developing the national capabilities needed for economic prosperity & global security,” the authors conclude. IST’s Strategic Balancing Initiative works to overcome public-private misalignments in the technology development ecosystem in order to accelerate American economic competitive advantage. ⚖️ Learn more about SBI: https://lnkd.in/gmqcRCpU ⚖️ Read “Why Venture Capital is Indispensable for U.S. Industrial Strategy:” https://lnkd.in/gEnHxg-m