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SMA Publications (Tagged: Cyber)

SMA Publication

11th Annual SMA Conference – “A Utopian or Dystopian Future, or Merely Muddling Through?”

This Conference assessed what today we rightly or wrongly perceive as historically unprecedented changes from the perspectives of politics and history, sociology, biology, information science, and technological innovation. There is a large body of scientific work that supports the notion that human societies are complex adaptive systems with emergent properties that contain core commonalities, but the actions of which cannot be predicted with certainty. Given the properties of human cognition and social behavior, the question remains: How might nations and societies best position themselves to prepare for and manage the risks associated with rapid change under conditions of fundamental uncertainty? The conference speakers and panelists addressed these issues relevant to key domains and dimensions of global security.
Year Published:
2018
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SMA Publication

US Discoverable Government Information Assets Directory

The United States Government possesses a vast store of information assets that can be leveraged to inform a variety of problem sets, and can be used by a wide range of governmental actors in the formation and execution of whole-of-government strategies. To enable this goal, however, these assets first must be made accessible in a single source that catalogues the information that is held.
Year Published:
2017
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SMA Publication

US-DiGIA: USG Discoverable Information Terrain

The United States currently faces a complex and dynamic security environment. States are no longer the only critical actors in the international arena; rather, a diverse range of non-state entities also has the potential to affect US interests and security—for good or bad. Economic influence, information control and propaganda, political influence, and social discontent can be and are being utilized by state and non-state actors alike to achieve their goals, in many cases bypassing the need for direct military action. In response, the US military is challenged to accomplish more, across a greater variety of domains, while facing a constrained budget environment. There are two central implications of this: first, many of the most intractable security problems the US faces require a whole of government approach. Second, in a complex and evolving international environment characterized by new and often ambiguous threats, information itself is a critical asset.
Year Published:
2017
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SMA Publication

Strategic Multi-layer Assessment Report Card

Strategic Multi-Layer Assessment (SMA) provides planning support to Commands. SMA projects focus on complex operational imperatives requiring multi-agency, multi- disciplinary solutions that are NOT within core Service/Agency competency. SMA solutions and participants are sought across USG and beyond. SMA is accepted and synchronized by Joint Staff (JS/J-39) and executed by ASD(R&E)/EC&P/RRTO. SMA efforts are Coalition based and address mission areas spanning Counter-Terrorism; Counter-Insurgency; Countering Proliferation of WMD (State and non-State); Individual, State, and National-level Deterrence Assessment; and Strategic Global and Regional Assessments.
Year Published:
2017
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SMA Publication

Recent IO Efforts and Sentiments

Question (R2 QL1): Have sentiments changed since the December 2014 polling? Have recent IO efforts in Mosul influenced these sentiments? What other means can we use to influence?
Year Published:
2017
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SMA Publication

A New Info Paradigm? From Genes to ‘Big Data’

We live in an age characterized by the reshaping of society through the presence of information and networks. The proliferation of information technologies from the micro and instantaneous to the insights hidden in “big data” has generated a range of new issues with implications for global transformation and political power shifts, patterns of conflict and warfare, and potential opportunities for enhancing global stability. The time is right for a thorough consideration of the implications of this “age” on US national security issues. How can we best understand the near-term and long-term consequences of these changes? What adaptations to our current intellectual frameworks, intelligence processes, organizational structures, command and control practices and planning approaches may be necessary? In short, how can the United States Government (USG) and its allies recognize the risks as well as the opportunities for enhanced global security presented by fuller realization of the “information age”?
Year Published:
2014
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SMA Publication

Cyber-Neurobiology and Psychology on Extremism

These reports will provide the operational and policy communities with a deeper understanding of the unique behavioral and neurobiological factors that underlie political extremism, specifically in the cyber realm. There are three volumes contained within this series:
Year Published:
2012
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SMA Publication

Malicious Non-state Actors and Contested Space Operations

This report provides an analysis of potential threats to space-based systems posed by non-state actors. It places particular emphasis on the need to consider the space domain as part of a multi-domain threat environment where domains are interconnected and interdependent. This research devotes significant attention to examining the nexus between space and cybersecurity, and to the strategic vulnerabilities posed by the increasing integration of cyber and space technologies in critical infrastructure.
Year Published:
2018
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SMA Publication

Malicious Non-state Actors and Contested Space Operations

This report provides an analysis of potential threats to space-based systems posed by non-state actors. It places particular emphasis on the need to consider the space domain as part of a multi-domain threat environment where domains are interconnected and interdependent. This research devotes significant attention to examining the nexus between space and cybersecurity, and to the strategic vulnerabilities posed by the increasing integration of cyber and space technologies in critical infrastructure.
Year Published:
2018
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SMA Publication

Human, Machine, War: How the Mind-Tech Nexus Will Win Future Wars

Air University Press has published Strategic Multilayer Assessment’s (SMA) latest book, Human, Machine, War: How the Mind-Tech Nexus Will Win Future Wars.
Year Published:
2025
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SMA Publication

Safely balancing a double-edged blade: Identifying and mitigating emerging biosecurity risks in precision medicine

Tools and methods of precision medicine are developing rapidly, through both iterative discoveries enabled by innovations in biomedical research (e.g., genome editing, synthetic biology, bioengineered devices). These are strengthened by advancements in information technology and the increasing body of data—as assimilated, analyzed, and made accessible—and affectable—through current and emerging cyber—and systems- technologies.
Year Published:
2024
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SMA Publication

Measuring Policy Effectiveness of Cyber Deterrence and Defensibility

This work was situated within the broader Strategic Multilayer Assessment Strategic Deterrence Frameworks (SDF) study, which incorporated four lines of effort (LOEs) and was initiated at the request of US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM). The present LOE4 study was oriented around two guiding questions in a supplementary project request letter signed by US European Command (EUCOM) Deputy Commander, Lieutenant General Steven Basham: 1) How does USEUCOM deter with and through allies and partners as part of integrated deterrence? and 2) What is the optimal balance of US and ally commitment and capability to maintain an effective deterrent to aggression in Europe?
Year Published:
2024
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SMA Publication

Evaluating China’s Road to Cyber Super Power

[Q5] How do US escalation management capabilities compare with those of our nuclear-armed competitors? How do relative non-kinetic capabilities (e.g., cyber exploits on infrastructure and information, communication of thresholds and redlines, integrated whole-of-government strategic messaging) contribute to these capabilities?
Year Published:
2021
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SMA Publication

Operational Cyberpsychology: Adapting a Special Operations Model for Cyber Operations

This paper conceptualizes operational cyberpsychology as a field that supports missions intended to project power in and through cyberspace (Joint Staff, 2018) by leveraging and applying expertise in mental processes and behavior in the context of interaction amongst humans and machines (Norman, 2017). Operational psychologists can improve the effectiveness of cyber operations by contributing to (1) supporting online psychological operations (PSYOP), (2) facilitating and supporting online intelligence operations, (3) assessment and selection of personnel, (4) operationally focused mental health support, and (5) hostage negotiations (Staal & Stephenson, 2013).
Year Published:
2021
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SMA Publication

SMA Prior Work in the Information Environment: An Annotated Bibliography

The current SMA project, Integrating Information in Joint Operations (IIJO), builds on a strong foundation of prior SMA work on influence and information operations. The themes underlying the research reflect shifting priorities as SMA has responded to requests ranging counterterrorism to deterrence to great power competition.
Year Published:
2020
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SMA Publication

Leaders of the Chinese Economy: Cognitive and Motivational Analyses

In order to gain a quantified, evidence-based picture of decision-making tendencies of Chinese industrial, technical, economic, and political leaders, the UBC research group assessed the integrative complexity and motivational hierarchy of high-level figures in government and (ostensibly) private enterprise.
Year Published:
2019
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SMA Publication

12th Annual SMA Conference- The Evolving Anatomy of Conflict in a Dynamically Changing World

The 12th Annual SMA Conference, entitled “The Evolving Anatomy of Conflict in a Dynamically Changing World,” was held 21-22 May 2019 at the General Jacob E. Smart Conference Center at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. The conference theme was defined as:
Year Published:
2019
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SMA Publication

On the Horizon: Security Challenges at the Nexus of State and Non-State Actors and Emerging/Disruptive Technologies

Innovation and new technologies have many positive attributes and provide significant improvement to humanity, much that is likely unforeseen at the time of initial discovery. The unpredictability of the technology trajectories can lead to significant negative consequences. This white paper aims to discuss the massive leaps in innovation and understand what this means for national security.
Year Published:
2019
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SMA Publication

Malicious Non-state Actors and Contested Space Operations

This report provides an analysis of potential threats to space-based systems posed by non-state actors. It places particular emphasis on the need to consider the space domain as part of a multi-domain threat environment where domains are interconnected and interdependent. This research devotes significant attention to examining the nexus between space and cybersecurity, and to the strategic vulnerabilities posed by the increasing integration of cyber and space technologies in critical infrastructure.
Year Published:
2018
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SMA Speaker Series (Tagged: Cyber)

SMA Speaker Series

AI: An Analyst’s Forecasting Tool

Artificial intelligence (AI) is proliferating throughout society and has implications for many careers and jobs, including military intelligence. More specifically, AI tools have the potential to enhance the analysis conducted by analysts within the intelligence community (IC). Dr. Flores emphasized the need for the United States to compete with China and Russia for AI dominance, as the stakes and implications of allowing these countries to surpass the United States in AI development continue to rise. These stakes include threats to democratic institutions and the spread of authoritarianism.
July 10, 2025
Dr. Kevin Modlin and Dr. Roberto Flores
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SMA Speaker Series

Arctic Strategic Tumult and Technological Resilience

Speaker Session Summary Forthcoming!
July 1, 2025
Gregory Falco and Caroline Kennedy-Pipe
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SMA Speaker Series

The Next US Warfighting Advantage: The Mind-Tech Nexus

During World War II, Germany combined emerging technological advancements with human elements of warfare—such as surprise and operational skill—to execute its Blitzkrieg strategy in the early stages of the conflict. Today, emerging technologies are enhancing the interface between warfighters and machines, threatening to fundamentally alter the nature and conduct of war. Even nascent technologies have the potential to reshape how people think about and conceptualize warfare.
June 26, 2025
Todd Veazie and Dr. Nicholas Wright
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SMA Speaker Series

Cyber and Cross-Domain Deterrence

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Jacqueline Schneider (US Naval War College) as a part of its SMA STRATCOM Academic Alliance Speaker Series.
May 23, 2018
Dr. Jacquelyn Schneider
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SMA Speaker Series

Focus on the New Economy, Not the Old: Why China's Economic Slowdown Understates Gains

National headlines about China’s economy have focused on its decelerating economic growth and gross domestic product (GDP).
April 30, 2025
Mr. Gerard DiPippo (RAND)
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SMA Speaker Series

Globally Critical Infrastructure: The Unique Risks and Challenges

Certain infrastructures are not only important to individual nations but also entire regions and the global system. Globally critical infrastructure (GCI) can be located within, across, and outside state borders.
April 1, 2025
Zak Kallenborn
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SMA Speaker Series

Strategic Stability and Emerging Russian and Chinese Technologies

SMA hosted a speaker session with Dr. Juljan Krause (University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation), Dr. Kimberly Peh (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory), and Dr. Spenser Warren (Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs) as part of its SMA General Speaker Series.
March 20, 2025
Dr. Juljan Krause, Dr. Kimberly Peh, and Dr. Spenser A. Warren
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SMA Speaker Series

Biosecurity Balancing Act: Delicate Dual-Use Issues of Synthetic Biology and Precision Medicine

The field of biomedical research is rapidly expanding and evolving, providing numerous opportunities for technological advancements in synthetic biology, genome editing, and bioengineered devices.
October 2, 2024
Dr. Diane DiEuliis and James Giordano, PhD, DPhil
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SMA Speaker Series

Ukrainian Resistance to Russian Disinformation: Lessons for Future Conflict

A key element of Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion has been its ability to counter Russian disinformation. In their recent report for RAND, Dr. Helmus and Dr. Holynska discuss Ukraine’s approach to combating disinformation and the lessons that the United States and NATO can draw from this effort.
September 19, 2024
Todd Helmus and Khrystyna Holynska
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SMA Speaker Series

The Next Quantum Superpower? US-China Quantum Competition and the New Global Quantum Scramble Quantum Computing

The race to achieve quantum computing has significant implications for the future security landscape. Dr. Williams highlighted the current progress, challenges, and opportunities for growth in the quantum computing field.
July 30, 2024
‍Dr. Brandon Kirk Williams
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SMA Speaker Series

Public Support for Self-Defence in Taiwan: The Current State of Research

Chinese President Xi Jinping has indicated that an invasion of Taiwan by 2027 is a distinct possibility, if not imminent. The concern of a Chinese invasion from the international community intensified following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
August 14, 2024
Dr. Yao-Yuan Yeh, Dr. Fang-Yu Chen, and Dr. Charles Wu
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SMA Speaker Series

Russia’s Cyber Power Base: From Cybercriminals to Private Contractors

Justin Sherman spoke to the SMA audience about Russia’s cyber power base—not just the state and intelligence actors, but also the private contractors and private sector companies that play an important role in Russia’s cyber power.
August 7, 2024
Justin Sherman
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SMA Speaker Series

The Promise & Perils of AI: What We’ve Learned from Some of the Largest Real World Deployments of Generative & Classical AI to Understand Global News

One of the GDELT Project’s goals is to use artificial intelligence (AI) to better understand our world.
July 11, 2024
Dr. Kalev Hannes Leetaru
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SMA Speaker Series

Measuring Policy Effectiveness of Cyber Deterrence and Defensibility

The United States needs more effective metrics to determine if integrated cyber deterrence is working (as called for in the 2023 cyber strategy for the Department of Defense (DOD)) as expected and to separate these effects from those of improving the overall defensibility of the Internet (as called for in the White House’s National Cybersecurity Strategy).
March 28, 2024
Mr. Jason Healey
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SMA Speaker Series

Constructing Killwebs for Effects Based Targeting in Multi-Domain Operations

SMA hosted a speaker session with COL Brian Davis (Northeast Asia Regional Fusion Cell, US Forces Korea) as part of its SMA “Strategic Deterrence Frameworks” (SDF) Speaker Series.
January 9, 2024
Brian R. Davis
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SMA Speaker Series

Update on the sUAS Ecosystem: Understanding the Basics: Vulnerability Assessment, Detection, CUAS Technology, and Law

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are still a relatively new technology and an even newer commercial product; however, the growth of the UAV market has been immense. During the last 13 years, there have been 1.7 million UAVs registered in 100 countries. Of these, 75% are for consumer or commercial use, increasing their prevalence in modern civil society. However, commercial UAVs have the capability to be used by the state militaries and to carry out attacks by violent non-governmental organizations. Because of these capabilities, many states have concerns over the growing commonality of commercial UAVs. Some of these concerns come from past assassination attempts on state leaders using UAVs. Col (Ret) Edwards emphasized that the war in Ukraine has given combatants a wealth of new case studies for both the development and employment of UAVs in combat. Ukraine itself has become an epicenter for UAV development.
July 20, 2023
Colonel (Ret) Bill Edwards (Building Intelligence Inc.)
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SMA Speaker Series

The Ukrainian Army is Leveraging Online Influencers. Can the U.S. Military?

The war in Ukraine has demonstrated how cooperation between a country’s military and prominent social media influencers can be a useful tool for harnessing narrative control relating to conflicts. Dr. Helmus argued that Ukraine has been out-performing Russia in its ability to create and disseminate effective narratives surrounding the ongoing war. The success of Ukraine’s information operations is in part due to its tactic of leveraging civilian and military influencers who regularly post on social media. These influencers use their platform to share posts that highlight the loss of innocent life during Russian attacks, the resilience of Ukraine’s civilian population, and the success of Ukrainian military operations. These information operations come at virtually no cost to Ukraine because most creators are posting videos on their own volition. Dr. Helmus commented that while researchers have not been able to empirically confirm the positive effects of these social media operations, Ukrainian officials have emphasized their importance on the battlefield. While Ukraine has recently been using its media to great effect, the practice of leveraging influencers on social media is a well-used marketing strategy.
June 6, 2023
Dr. Todd Helmus (RAND)
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SMA Speaker Series

Cyber Persistence and National Security

The cyber domain is an increasingly prevalent theater of competition, and the US must be able to effectively deter opponents using cyber tools and capabilities. Dr. Fischerkeller emphasized that successful deterrence in cyber relies on initiative persistence, which he defined as “primarily continuous exploitative cyber fait accompli campaigns.” If done successfully, cyber initiatives can limit, frustrate, and disrupt a competitor’s activities. These activities include, but are not limited to, stealing personal identifying information, circumventing sanctions, and attacks on democratic institutions. The FBI currently leads many of the US’s preemptive cyber campaigns. Preemptive cyber activities can complicate an adversary’s military preparation, deterring it from carrying out aggressive activities or an all-out military assault. As an example, Dr. Fischerkeller used the preparation that China would need to carry out before invading Taiwan. He argued that if the US and its allies identify China’s preparation early enough, they would likely have a year to carry out preemptive cyber and information operations before an invasion would occur. However, he warned that being too stronghanded in the cyber domain could encourage an opponent to resort to aggressive military actions.
May 23, 2023
Dr. Michael Fischerkeller (IDA)
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SMA Speaker Series

How Strategy Must Align to Strategic Environments: Deterrence and Initiative Persistence

There have been several strategic paradigm shifts relating to deterrence, coercion, and security across the entire spectrum of conflict and competition. Using the proper deterrence and coercion strategy in the right domain is crucial to success. Dr. Harknett emphasized that the development of initiative persistence is key to building security and effective deterrence in all domains, especially cyber. Security in cyber space is reliant on very different factors than security in conventional warfighting domains. Cyber security relies on partnerships between public and private entities in a whole of government effort that uses an active defense, or forward defense. While forward defense is proactive, it is not aggressive. The current forward defense strategy includes improving defenses of foreign allied networks, improving allied understanding of adversarial tactics, techniques, and procedures, and increasing the resilience of US domestic networks by coordinating with the private sector.
May 10, 2023
Dr. Richard Harknett (University of Cincinnati)
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SMA Speaker Series

How Mercenary Spyware Threatens Democracy

SMA hosted a speaker session with Dr. Ron Deibert (Professor of Political Science and Founder & Director, The Citizen Lab, University of Toronto) as part of its SMA General Speaker Series.Spyware, made by private companies and employed by governments, is a direct threat to digital technology users around the world. Dr. Deibert, founder and director of the Citizen Lab, an interdisciplinary laboratory studying digital espionage and surveillance, online transparency and freedom, and other Internet technologies, suggested that the widespread use of this spyware is even partially responsible for the current global authoritarian backslide. By studying incidents of digital espionage, they’ve helped victims of intrusive spyware by diagnosing the infection and sometimes identifying the offending company and government.
March 8, 2023
Deibert, R. (Professor of Political Science and Founder & Director, The Citizen Lab, University of Toronto)
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SMA Speaker Series

Russia's Open-source Code and Private-sector Cybersecurity Ecosystem

SMA hosted a speaker session with Mr. Justin Sherman (Founder & CEO, Global Cyber Strategies) as part of its SMA EUCOM Speaker Series.Russia and China are using their private sectors to strengthen their cyber defensive and offensive capabilities. Russian and Chinese companies have purposely uploaded flawed code to international communication companies’ open-source coding.. For example, Huawei, China’s large information technology company, has been the largest contributor to Linux code; however, it has uploaded 30 lines of code that exhibit suspicious behavior. Pushwoosh, a company based out of Russia, pretended to be an American company and gained access to the US Army’s security software, and wrote code for its cyber defense. While Russia does not have a telecommunications company the size as Huawei, the Kremlin is very active with its online coding and hacking communities. It is relying on private industry to bolster its defensive and offensive cyber capabilities.
February 22, 2023
Sherman, J. (Founder & CEO, Global Cyber Strategies)
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SMA Speaker Series

Modeling Exploitable Conditions in the 21st Century Strategic Environment

The creation of a computational model that encapsulates the increasingly complex and overwhelming world as multiple systems that can be measured empirically could have strong implications for civilian and military decision makers. NSI Inc. and SMA are currently working on such a model that is expanding on prior research conducted by TRADOC G-2. NSI has expanded on TRADOC’s original 24 exploitable conditions to create the Global Exploitable Conditions Model (GECM) as part of the Anticipating the Future Operational Environment (AFOE) project for the US Joint Staff. Dr. Kuznar stated that while GECM is supported by a large corpus of qualitative research, a computational model has been built to empirically test it through network and system dynamics. GECM contains 17 subsystems that are comprised of 124 nodes and 829 edges where nodes connect. This model is the starting point for all of NSI’s research during the AFOE project.
November 30, 2022
Dr. Lawrence Kuznar (Chief Cultural Sciences Officer, NSI)
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SMA Speaker Series

Artificial Intelligence, Deepfakes, and Disinformation: A Primer

Deepfakes are becoming a more frequent feature in today’s modern information environment. Their increasing prevalence and quality are becoming a threat to society. Dr. Helmus commented that deepfakes are directly contributing to an ongoing modern phenomenon called truth decay. Even images and videos that have traditionally been strong forms of accreditation for information can now be called into question. Social consequences of deepfakes include election manipulation, lower trust in journalism, and an increasing vulnerability of the most likely victims. Likely victims of deepfakes include women who can be exploited by having their faces placed on an actress of an adult video. AI programs, such as DALL-E, can be used to create convincing images from simple text commands.
November 16, 2022
Helmus, T. (RAND)
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SMA Speaker Series

Stabilizing Great Power Rivalries

SMA hosted a speaker session with Dr. Michael Mazarr (RAND) and Dr. Samuel Charap (RAND) as part of its SMA EUCOM/INDOPACOM Speaker Series.
March 3, 2022
Dr. Michael Mazarr and Dr. Samuel Charap
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SMA Speaker Series

How Can the US Department of Defense Catch Up With the CCP Within 6 Months?

SMA hosted a speaker session with Mr. Nicolas Chaillan (Chief Technology Officer, Prevent Breach & Former Air Force and Space Force Chief Software Officer) as part of its SMA NDU (INSS/PRISM) Speaker Series.
February 3, 2022
Mr. Nicolas Chaillan
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SMA Speaker Series

Restrictive Deterrence in Cyberspace: Findings from a Series of Online Field Experiments

Cyber-attacks have increasingly become a more prevalent national security threat since 2000; however, deterrence literature rarely mentions cyberspace.
February 3, 2022
Dr. David Maimon
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SMA Speaker Series

Cyber Risks in Nuclear Escalation Scenarios

SMA hosted a speaker session with Dr. Herb Lin (Hank J. Holland Fellow in Cyber Policy and Security, Hoover Institution & Senior Research Scholar, Center for International Security and Cooperation, Stanford University), as part of its SMA STRATCOM Academic Alliance Speaker Series.
October 29, 2021
Dr. Herbert Lin
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SMA Speaker Series

A Resilient Cyber Policy for the Indo-Pacific

When deciding how to best confront China’s regional cyber capabilities, the US should first assess the state of the Indo-Pacific cyber threat and its allies’ capabilities to protect themselves, stressing resilience and communication.
October 21, 2021
Dr. Brandon Kirk Williams
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SMA Speaker Series

National Security in a Digital World

The vast amount of current and emerging technologies allows any individual or governing body to maximize the impact of information operations. The Honorable Sue Gordon commented that there is more technology available to the DOD than it can reasonably use.
September 22, 2021
Ms. Gordon
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SMA Speaker Series

Moscow’s Digital Offensive: Building Sovereignty in Cyberspace

Dr. Pallin commented that Russia’s conception of cyber operations is different than most Western countries. The term cyber is rarely found in Russian security documents; instead information space is more frequently used. Its choice of terminology shows Russia’s priority is controlling the information available to its domestic population. This control, which allows Russia to create a sovereign space online, is meant to alleviate the Kremlin’s insecurities. The Roskmnadzor (Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media) was given direct control over Russia’s internet in the case of an existential crisis or war. However, Roskomnadzor had already taken control of Russia’s internet and slowed down Twitter and all addresses containing ‘t.co’ to stop anti-Russian messages from reaching its civilian population.
July 31, 2021
Carolina Vendil Pallin
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SMA Speaker Series

Disrupting China’s Digital Silk Road

Mr. Hillman explained that China is expanding its influence in both its near and far abroad in a similar manner to past great powers. Included in these attempts to influence China’s influence is its COVID-19 pandemic response, which has accelerated China’s ability to expand its influence over the past year. It has also helped expose several of China’s mistakes, however. Part of China’s influence operation is the Digital Silk Road—a subset of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that is focused on digital infrastructure, submarine optical cable projects, and spatial satellite information passageways. Recently, China’s Digital Silk Road has become increasingly focused on the digital economy, AI, nanotechnology, quantum computing, big data, cloud computing, and smart cities. China is especially focused on increasing influence over other countries’ digital infrastructure because it allows China access to those countries’ data, Mr. Hillman highlighted. An example of this is the South Atlantic Inter Link (SAIL), which connects Cameroon to Brazil. The cable only experiences small amounts of traffic, revealing that Cameroon is getting minimal use of the cable even though it has been saddled with a large amount of debt to China as a result of its construction.
March 31, 2021
Jonathan E. Hillman
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SMA Speaker Series

The Global Struggle for Strategic Advantage in ICT

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Mr. Mark Montgomery (US Cyberspace Solarium Commission) and Mr. Robert Morgus (US Cyberspace Solarium Commission) as a part of its SMA Strategic Advantage Speaker Series. Mr. Montgomery began the group’s presentation by stating that China has purposefully acted maliciously towards the US by using information operations (IO) that are consistently below the threshold for kinetic reprisals. An example of China’s malicious activity is its installation of malware on hard drives that are being exported to the US. In response to China’s low-level malicious activity, one of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission’s objectives was to build appropriate escalation thresholds. However, according to Mr. Montgomery, the command most effected by China’s IO, US Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM), is undermanned, overworked, and undertrained. Making USCYBERCOM’s task more difficult, the US no longer has a strong strategic advantage in information and communications technology (ICT). Mr. Montgomery stated that ultimately, the USG needs to cooperate with the US private sector and its allies to counteract China’s growing presence in the information environment (IE). He then added that that the success of this strategy relies on five pillars, which include 1) identifying key technology equipment, 2) ensuring that the minimum resources required for manufacturing to take place are present, 3) protecting the US’s supply chain, 4) stimulating its own domestic market, and 5) ensuring its long-term global competitiveness.
March 16, 2021
Mark Montgomery and Robert Morgus
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SMA Speaker Series

Masspersonal Social Engineering: Manipulative Communication at the Intersections of Cyber and Information Operations

SMA hosted a speaker session, presented by Dr. Sean Lawson (University of Utah & Marine Corps University) and Dr. Robert Gehl (Louisiana Tech University), as a part of its SMA IIJO Speaker Series. Dr. Lawson presented their material, and both Dr. Lawson and Dr. Gehl participated in the audience Q&A.Dr. Lawson began the presentation by listing the three ways that Russia interfered in the 2016 US presidential election: 1) by hacking the Democratic National Convention (DNC); 2) by leaking sensitive emails to news sources and third-party sites, including Wiki Leaks; and 3) by amplifying information to manipulate individual’s thoughts and actions. Dr. Lawson emphasized that even some domestic actors in the US may have used disinformation practices, including Cambridge Analytica, which was accused of releasing information designed to create voter suppression among minority groups.
February 19, 2021
Robert W. Gehl and Sean Lawson
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SMA Speaker Series

Analyzing Election Disinformation Efforts by Foreign Actors

Dr. Posard began the speaker session by stating that he and his colleagues examined Russia’s past interference in the 2016 US presidential election in an effort to mitigate the impact that Russian interference could have on the 2020 election. He emphasized that Russia’s ultimate goal in its election interference efforts is not to aid one candidate in winning but rather to paralyze the US election system. Russia aims to achieve this goal by halting political cooperation between legislators, further polarizing the US civilian population, and ultimately leading citizens to not participate in future democratic elections. Dr. Posard stated that while the US has been targeted by a foreign power’s influence campaigns before, Russia’s influence campaign has been the most effective due to its efficient use of technology.Dr. William Marcellino then described the research team’s methodology. According to Dr. Marcellino, the team documented more than two million Twitter conversations from 630 unique accounts to create an overlay of the communication network that makes up the information environment (IE). The team created its model of the IE by first using a community detection algorithm and then giving the data to human analysts. Dr. Marcellino stated that the research team was able to identify which organizations communicate with each other and which groups act as communication hubs.
February 12, 2021
Todd C. Helmus, William Marcellino, and Marek N. Posard‍
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SMA Speaker Series

Russian Cyber Strategies and Information Operations: From Cuba to Crimea and Beyond

SMA hosted a speaker session as a part of its SMA General Speaker Series, featuring Dr. Katya Drozdova (Seattle Pacific University).Dr. Drozdova began her presentation by emphasizing the need to understand the complexity of Russia, particularly when assessing its cyber and information operations. Characteristically, these operations serve Russia’s broader interests and are often integrated with other means to broaden national power, military strength, and covert operations. Dr. Drozdova used the Cuban Missile Crisis as an example of a Russian information operation, as the Soviets used strategic communication with the US in an attempt to force the US to remove its nuclear weapons from Turkey. Another notable example is Crimea, where Russia is currently deploying significant elements of a cyber campaign that are tightly interweaved with special operations, election politics, etc.
October 21, 2020
KATYA DROZDOVA
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SMA Speaker Series

Thresholds in Cyberspace

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Jacquelyn Schneider (Hoover Institution, Stanford University) as a part of its SMA GeneralSpeaker Series. Dr. Schneider first stated that the creation and management of thresholds is critical to the success of US strategy. She then cited Connable et al.’s when defining a “threshold” as a “negotiated, declared, or tacitly understood delimiter between measures short of war and high-order conflict (such as full-scale conventional or nuclear war).” Dr. Schneider explained that thresholds are defined by two characteristics: the strength of the threshold (i.e., how large the space is between rungs on the escalation ladder) and the location of the threshold on the escalation ladder (low vs. high). Moreover, thresholds are constructed by perceptions of potential retaliation cost, domestic cost, and normative cost. Dr. Schneider then presented a series of characteristics that create strong thresholds, including treaties with punishment mechanisms, agreed upon definitions, and costly declarative statements (i.e., redlines). She also outlined a series of characteristics that move thresholds up the escalation ladder, including significant and measurable physical effects, gross violent effects, and high-saliency means. Next, Dr. Schneider focused on the cyber threshold. There is a threshold at the lower rung of the escalation ladder when it comes to cyber, but the US and its allies are uncertain of its strength yet, according to Dr. Schneider. Most actions of this nature have not occurred yet, and some more serious events (e.g., cyber operations with violent, strategic, or overt effects or the threat of such effects) may propel above the threshold of regular cyber attacks. The cyber threshold presents a problem as well. Strategy requires two thresholds: a lower threshold that restrains US and other state cyber activity from violent retaliation and a higher threshold that deters others from taking strategic cyber attacks against the US. The problem lies in the coexistence of these two thresholds. Dr. Schneider concluded by presenting a series of recommendations for the US to solve this problem: 1) by determining the cyber thresholds that it wants to create, 2) by becoming a “norm entrepreneur,” and 3) by increasing its resiliency and cross-domain punishment.
March 11, 2020
Jacqueline Schneider
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SMA Speaker Series

Hunting Bots & Trolls in a Game Environment

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Stuart Shulman (Texifter) as a part of its SMA General Speaker Series. Dr. Shulman’s brief focused on the ways in which one identify Internet bots and trolls by using text classification programs. He stated that though machines enable one to classify large bodies of text, it remains difficult for machines to be consistently accurate; therefore, a human must remain in the loop. Dr. Shulman then spoke about CoderRank, a program that ranks humans based on trust and knowledge vectors. The idea behind the program is, when training machines for text analysis, greater reliance should be placed on the specific inputs of those humans most likely to create a valid observation. CoderRank, therefore, is designed to identify those who are most qualified to code and classify text. Dr. Shulman proceeded to discuss lessons learned from tracking down fake accounts in the Trudeau and Biden campaigns. In the Trudeau campaign, Dr. Shulman and his team looked for biographical indicators that were not Canadian, conducted searches based on keywords, and analyzed abnormal text. In the Biden campaign, Dr. Shulman and his team looked for accounts with significant followings that had, in reality, purchased social media followers. He stated that as we move into this next technological landscape, it is only going to become more difficult to discern who is real and who is not online. Moreover, if one immerses oneself in social media profile data and looks for specific indicators, one can see a mixture of real, authentic people; human-assisted bots; bot-assisted humans; and pure bots. Dr. Shulman then spoke about bot detection based on the frequency of tweets. He and his team of coders create filters, labels, and other features in order to determine where the tweets are coming from. They also examine Twitter accounts’ networks to decipher whether or not the accounts of interest are operated by humans. Dr. Shulman expressed, however, that gaining access to data is becoming increasingly difficult due to increased regulations and data privacy restrictions, which makes it harder for him and his team to identify bots. To conclude, Dr. Shulman spoke about how his text classification and bot detecting techniques can be applied to a gaming environment, specifically with regards to veteran suicide prevention and school shooters prevention.
February 12, 2020
Dr. Stuart Shulman
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SMA Speaker Series

Significant Multi-Domain Incidents against Critical Infrastructure (SMICI) Dataset

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Steve Sin (National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START)) and Mr. Rhyner Washburn (START) as a part of its SMA DHS CAOE Speaker Series. To begin, Dr. Sin stated that cyber-physical attacks have the potential to damage physical infrastructure assets with widespread consequences. Thus, this type of attack is a major homeland/national security challenge for the foreseeable future. Surprisingly, prior to the development of the Significant Multi-domain Incidents against Critical Infrastructure (SMICI) dataset, a dataset that aggregates publicly available data on cyber-physical attacks did not exist. Dr. Sin and Mr. Washburn recognized that this inhibited individuals’ understanding of the phenomenon and their ability to hypothesize behaviors and motivations of the attackers. Therefore, they created a dataset that collects on 12 individual variables and currently contains 130 cyber-physical and cyber-operational incidents worldwide between 1 January 2009 and 15 November 2019. Next, Mr. Washburn explained that in terms of cyber security, one must think in terms of the “CIA triad” (confidentiality, integrity, availability). He then presented the dataset’s primary findings regarding the top critical infrastructure (CI) sectors targeted by state and non-state actors; the share of incidents attributed to state, non-state, and unknown actors; and the motives behind such attacks on CI sectors. Of the attributed state actors, Russia was responsible for 60% of the attacks, North Korea for 20%, and Iran for 12%. The most common motivations of these attacks were espionage (46%) and destruction (39%), with cybercrime coming in third at 17%. The dataset also revealed that the US is the most targeted country regardless of motive, and Ukraine is the second most targeted country, generally, and the most targeted country when it comes to destruction incidents, specifically. Mr. Washburn then spoke about the disruptive cyber-physical/operational share of incidents, highlighting that 21% were cyber-physical attacks and 79% were cyber-operational attacks. To conclude, Dr. Sin and Mr. Washburn outlined the changes that they plan to implement in future versions of the SMICI dataset.
February 14, 2020
Steve Sin and Rhyner Washburn
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SMA Speaker Series

Commodification of Cyber Capabilities: A Grand Cyber Arms Bazaar

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Mr. Munish Walther-Puri (NYC Cyber Command), Mr. Kyle Hunter (FBI), Mr. Aaron Henry (FireEye, Inc.), and Mr. Dana Madsen (CIA) as a part of its SMA General Speaker Series. To begin, Mr. Henry stated that the proliferation and commodification of cyber offensive capabilities through the emergence of a “grand cyber arms bazaar” is reshaping the cyber balance of power, enabling a wide variety of actors to use cyber tactics for geopolitical impact and/or economic gain. He explained that the purpose of his team’s research was to create a framework that distinguishes actors from one another and explore the current deficiency of cyber deterrence efforts, the lack of clear redlines, and the unintended consequences of cyber engagement. Mr. Henry then presented the team’s findings. They found that foreign actors have had varying levels of success in using cyber means for profit, collection, and attack. They also found that policy challenges related to deterrence, redlines, and escalation have resulted from the lack of cyber norms and challenges faced by the West in imposing consequences for malicious cyber activity and actions that fall under the threshold of war. Mr. Henry also stated that private and public sector executives need to posture their organizations for an increasing risk of surprise in cyberspace. These executives need to account for geopolitical developments in their cyber defenses, find ways to bolster operational and technical resilience, and learn to prioritize threats. Next, Mr. Hunter provided a detailed description of the the framework that his team created. In this framework, actors are labeled as established, emerging, or opportunistic based on the organizational maturity of their cyber programs. The ability of actors to quickly buy, build, or bridge sophisticated cyber capabilities and processes is also factored into the framework. Mr. Hunter explained that these tactics allow an actor to jump from a lower level of capabilities to a higher level very rapidly. Next, Mr. Madsen highlighted some of the implications of an actor’s decision to buy, build, or bridge cyber capabilities. Mr. Walther-Puri then identified areas for further work and outlined several policy challenges involving deterrence, redlines, and escalation. To conclude the session, he stated that none of this research matters unless someone does something with the results, whether it is engaging in a conversation about them or making a decision to reallocate resources.
November 19, 2019
Dana Madsen, Clare Boyle, Aaron Henry, and Munish Walther-Puri
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SMA Speaker Series

Technology and National Security—Looking to the Future

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Daniel Gerstein as a part of its SMA DHS CAOE Speaker Series. This is the inaugural speaker session of SMA’s new series, co-hosted by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate’s (S&T) Office of University Programs (OUP) and the Center for Accelerating Operational Efficiency (CAOE) at Arizona State University. The series is titled “The Age of Disruption—Great Power Competition Implications for Homeland Security.” During his presentation, Dr. Gerstein addressed the following questions: 1) What is technology, and where does it come from?; 2) Can technology be managed?; 3) What is the appropriate balance of discovery and prudence?; 4) What does the history of technology tell us about the future?; and 5) How can we shape a future that is hospitable—or at least not threatening—to humanity? He explained that the history of humankind and technology are inextricably intertwined; humans even measure their progress by the technologies used throughout history. Moreover, technologies are collections of other technologies or systems, and each generation makes improvements to the technologies made by the previous one. This convergence of technologies has led humankind to possess a greater technological capacity and reach than ever before. Furthermore, he stated that technology is inherently dual-use, increasingly disruptive, and highly democratized. Next, Dr. Gerstein discussed six major trends that he observed during his research: 1) the continuing shifts in technology development; 2) the increasing challenge of managing technology development and controlling technology; 3) the emergence of a tech war; 4) the growing competition between humans and computers; 5) the changing expectations for society regarding privacy, liberty, and freedom; and 6) the increasing risk technology poses to humanity. To conclude, Dr. Gerstein spoke about several areas for potential conflict in an increasingly technology-enabled world, including 5G, social media, deep fakes, immigration, the “Big Data Catch-22” (people need to consolidate vast amounts of data, but doing so creates vulnerabilities), the cyber realm, export control, and artificial intelligence.
November 22, 2019
Dr. Daniel Gerstein
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SMA Speaker Series

Cyber Deterrence or: How We Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Signal

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Jonathan Welburn (RAND) as a part of its SMA General Speaker Series. Dr. Welburn began by discussing the current state of cyber space and cyber conflict. He then stated that the need for cyber deterrence has drawn key attention from US strategists. Dr. Welburn also highlighted the similarities and differences between classical and cyber deterrence, in addition to two key problems relevant to cyber deterrence: the attribution problem (attribution is often ambiguous after an attack has occurred) and the signaling problem (unlike conventional weapons, one cannot test cyber weapons or publicly display them, so it is often unclear as to what an actor’s cyber capabilities are). He then stated that within cyber deterrence, there is a specific defender strategy space, which reveals opportunities for deterrence through denial (e.g., deception, interdiction, patching) and punishment (e.g., public attribution, retaliation). He highlighted some of the current literature written on retaliation, which his team chose to focus on when designing its cyber deterrence game. Dr. Welburn then explained how his team designed this game, which involved two players: the attacker, who had the option to attack or not attack, and the defender, who had the options to signal or not signal and to retaliate or not retaliate. The attacker lacked perfect knowledge on the defender’s capability to punish by retaliation, which represented the signaling problem, while the defender lacked perfect knowledge of the attack’s occurrence and origin, which represented the attribution problem. After reviewing the attacker’s and defender’s incentives and how the game operated, Dr. Welburn presented his team’s key findings: 1) defenders should be deceptive of their true capabilities, 2) defenders should signal deceptively, 3) high attribution improves deterrence, and 4) increasing the cost of correct retaliation relative to incorrect retaliation improves deterrence. To conclude, Dr. Welburn stated that his team believes that cyber deterrence is possible, and deterrence by denial is ideal from a US cyber deterrence policy standpoint. However, he suggested that the DOD can improve its deterrence through an adversary-specific retaliation strategy, which would utilize both deception and signaling.
November 7, 2019
Jonathan W. Welburn, Justin Grana, and Karen Schwindt
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SMA Speaker Series

Blockchain: What's Not to Like?

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. David Rosenthal (Retired) as a part of its SMA General Speaker Series. During his presentation, Dr. Rosenthal adopted a skeptical view of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. He stated that the goal of his presentation was to explain how the way in which the pieces of a system (e.g., one that conducts money transactions or stores files) fit together makes the problems that the technology encounters in practice difficult to fix. In other words, the problems are “inherent in the underlying requirements.”
July 30, 2019
David S. H. Rosenthal
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SMA Speaker Series

Going Dark: Implications of an Encrypted World

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Abraham Wagner (Center for Advanced Studies on Terrorism) and Ms. Sophia D’Antoine (Margin Research) as a part of its SMA DHS Speaker Series. Dr. Wagner set the context for the talk by reminding listeners that in the mid-1990s, the world was in a period of transition from analog to digital and that today, we live in a connected world that adapts to demand. In modern society, encryption is needed for privacy and security purposes; however, it also presents a challenge for law enforcement. The Internet’s user base has greatly expanded; however, this population has also become far more computer literate and savvy, which adds to the difficulty of law enforcement.
July 23, 2019
Dr. Abraham Wagner and Sophia D’Antoine
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SMA Speaker Series

Social Cyber-Security Dynamics

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Kathleen Carley (Carnegie Mellon University) as a part of its SMA DHS Speaker Series. Dr. Carley first defined and characterized social cyber-security. She then stated that social media is about networks and identified three influential groups that interact with users within these networks: 1) echochambers (a toxic group of people connected to each other that share the same ideas), 2) superspreaders (individuals that spread information and alert people of changes), and 3) superfriends (individuals that engage in dialogue to change others’ beliefs and get them to act). Dr. Carley proceeded to discuss the four D’s of traditional information warfare (dismiss, distort, dismay, and distract) and present her key findings regarding technology exploitation, social cognitive manipulation, and more general manipulation.
June 12, 2019
Dr. Kathleen M. Carley
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SMA Speaker Series

Cybersecurity Futures 2025: Insights and Findings

To begin, Ms. Thomas outlined her team’s key propositions: 1) Cybersecurity is the biggest problem of the Internet era; 2) The problem set is evolving more quickly than our understanding of it (and our ability to ‘solve’ it); 3) Different countries and industries will grapple with these challenges in different ways; and 4) Gaining foresight into those differences enables us to tilt the digital world in a direction that is more secure and beneficial to people and societies
June 7, 2019
Steven Weber, David Kaufman, Dawn Thomas, and Alan Cohn, Partner
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SMA Speaker Series

Cybersecurity Policy and Planning: Technologies for Keeping the Nation Safe

Dr. Wagner first stated that we are in a new world. Digital data has replaced analog, the world is dependent on Internet infrastructure (a commercial entity), and most importantly, cybersecurity has not kept pace.
May 6, 2019
Wagner, A. (Center for Advanced Studies on Terrorism)
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SMA Speaker Series

Deterrence in Cyberspace

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Ethan Bueno de Mesquita (University of Chicago) as a part of its SMA STRATCOM Speaker Series. Dr. Bueno de Mesquita began by stating that although the US and its allies have tremendous cyber capacity, practitioners tend to believe that their strategic thinking is lagging behind.
March 1, 2019
Bueno de Mesquita, E. (University of Chicago)
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SMA Speaker Series

Operating at Speed in Technology Influenced Environments

High-capability technologies are becoming increasingly accessible to individuals for a low price and with a low skill requirement, a small footprint, and a high level of signature reduction. Lt Col Snow provided a few examples of such technologies, while focusing on a series of do-it-yourself (DIY) tools, and spoke about hacking as a service at both the national and regional level.
February 7, 2019
Snow, J. (USSOCOM Donovan Group)
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SMA Speaker Series

Hacking the Bomb: Cyber Threats and Nuclear Weapons

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Andrew Futter (University of Leicester) as a part of its SMA STRATCOM Academic Alliance Speaker Series. During his presentation, Dr. Futter highlighted his research on cyber threats and nuclear weapons.
November 29, 2018
Futter, A. (University of Leicester)
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SMA Speaker Series

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media

SMA hosted an exclusive Q&A session featuring Dr. Peter Singer (New America) as a part of its SMA DHS Speaker Series.
December 3, 2018
Singer, P. (New America)
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SMA Speaker Series

Nuclear Command and Control in the 21st Century: Maintaining Surety in Outer Space and Cyberspace

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Jared Dunnmon (Stanford University) as a part of its SMA STRATCOM Academic Alliance Speaker Series. Dr. Dunnmon began his presentation by discussing the challenges for 21st century nuclear command, control, and communication (NC3), as well as the US’s increasing reliance on space-based NC3. He identified potential NC3 vulnerabilities in both outer space and cyber space and explained a few major classes of exploitable flaws in these domains. He proceeded to describe various technological tools currently being developed for risk mitigation and policy tools that “adapt old rules to new domains.” Dr. Dunnmon concluded his presentation by talking through a scenario (an Advanced Extremely High Frequency [AEHF] satellite malfunction) and offering his concluding thoughts.
August 22, 2018
Jared Dunnmon
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SMA Speaker Series

The Influence Machine: Hacking Deterrence with Automated IO

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by MAJ Christopher Telley (Naval Postgraduate School) as a part of its SMA General Speaker Series. MAJ Telley began his presentation with a quote by Andrew Ng: “Just as electricity transformed almost everything 100 years ago, today I actually have a hard time thinking of an industry that I don’t think artificial intelligence (AI) will transform in the next several years.” He proceeded to define automated influence, as well as the “Influence Machine,” which converges three uses of AI for IO: algorithmic content generation capacity, personalized targeting capability, and firehose dissemination capacity. He spoke about how manufactured influence is not a new concept and how Martin Luther’s posting and distribution of his Ten Theses was its “Protestant precedent.” MAJ Telley also spoke about modern examples of manufactured influence and about the exponential potential and strategic asymmetry of the influence machine. He concluded his presentation by offering policy recommendations, identifying areas of necessary change, and outlining his overall conclusions.
August 15, 2018
Telley, C. (Naval Postgraduate School)
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SMA Speaker Series

Complexity in the Convergent Forces of Change

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Lt Gen (Ret) Patrick Hughes as a part of its SMA DHS Speaker Series. Lt Gen Hughes began his presentation by stating that the United States, its allies, and its enemies are all beset by threats, challenges, and complexities of the modern age. He stated that this condition will only intensify, and therefore, we need to prepare for the future. He explained that we are living in an era of convergence and emergence: several evolving conditions are converging, and new conditions are emerging, simultaneously. For the remainder of the brief, Lt Gen Hughes outlined the key concerns that civil society faces (instability, the rise of transnational crime and criminal enterprise, environmental change, etc.), described the “global condition,” and discussed what implications these impending problems may have.
July 11, 2018
Patrick M. Hughes
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SMA Speaker Series

Emerging Trends in the Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Ecosystems

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Misty Blowers (Peraton) as a part of its SMA DHS Speaker Series. Dr. Blowers first spoke about the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies and how ease of access, attraction for anonymity, and loss of faith in state based currencies has caused global attraction to these constructs. She also discussed how new cryptocurrencies, like Monero, have emerged to provide more anonymity than ever before thought possible through innovative obfuscation techniques including decoy transactions and invisible internet protocols. This results in new money laundering concerns and a means to facilitate criminal activity. Dr. Blowers explained how blockchain architectures, like Ethereum, provide new potential for innovation via smart contracts. Smart contracts can enable extremely secure distributed architectures and collaborative environments to advance a broad spectrum of research topics; like distributed software architectures and multi-agent systems. To conclude the session, Dr. Blowers discussed how blockchain architectures, smart contracts, and tokenization can offer significant benefits to the Department of Defense, particularly with respect to artificial intelligence, logistics chain management, and a multitude of new research areas.
July 17, 2018
Dr. Misty Blowers
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NSI Publications (Tagged: Cyber)

NSI Publication

Smoke, Mirrors, and Mayhem: The Good Fight Remixed

The Army University Press created the Future Warfare Writing Program to generate ideas about possible complexities of future warfare, as presented in the U.S. Army Operating Concept.
Year Published:
2017
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NSI Publication

The Abraham Accords and Iran’s Unconventional Warfare Activities

The Abraham Accords normalizing diplomatic and economic relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Israel and Bahrain, as well as a less robust agreement with Sudan, represent a historic turning point for Israel. Together with the Camp David Accords (Egypt) and the 1994 Peace Accord (Jordan), the Abraham Accords bring to five the number of Arab states that have officially recognized Israel’s right to exist—a claim that states in the Gulf and Near East have denied since Israel was founded.
Year Published:
2020
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