RUSI Panel Explores Role of ‘Naming and Shaming’ as a Tool of Cyber Statecraft
RUSI, together with King’s College London and the University of Bath, held a panel event exploring how the practice of ‘naming and shaming’ state threat actors has become a routine part of US and UK statecraft.
At the event at King’s College London’s Science Gallery, a panel of experts from government, academia and industry discussed the past, present and future of public cyber attribution, reflecting on the risks and opportunities presented by ‘naming and shaming’ hostile actors.
The event formed part of RUSI’s wider programme of research around cyber strategy in an era of great power competition: Cyber Statecraft in an Era of Systemic Competition. The Cyber Statecraft event series is funded by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), in partnership with the Research Institute for Sociotechnical Cyber Security (RISCS).
Panellists included:
- Ciaran Martin, Professor of Practice, Blavatnik School of Government
- Sandra Joyce, VP, Google Threat Intelligence
- Samantha Seller, Head of Cyber Threats, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
- Sean Newell, Chief of the National Security Cyber Section, Department of Justice
- (Moderating) Shashank Joshi, Defence Editor, The Economist.
Sean Newell, Chief of the National Security Cyber Section at the US Department of Justice, said:
Approximately ten years ago, the Department of Justice made the momentous decision to publicly deploy its law enforcement tools against the PLA’s voracious cyber-enabled campaigns to steal intellectual property from U.S. companies. Events since then have demonstrated that the Department made the right call in taking those first steps towards ending the impunity that then reigned in cyberspace.In the decade since, the Department has established a well-documented track record of publicly deploying its unique tools – such as attribution through criminal charges or court-authorized technical operations – to disrupt and deter state-sponsored cyber threats, often in coordination with actions by its U.S. government, foreign, and private sector partners. There’s undoubtedly more work to do in the U.S., U.K., and elsewhere. But we now have a strong foundation upon which to base future collective actions to counter threats to international security and cybersecurity.
Sean Newell, Chief of the National Security Cyber Section at the US Department of Justice
About RUSI’s Cyber Research Group
RUSI’s Cyber research group takes a global approach to its research, examining UK and international strategic responses to cyber. The team leverages the broader experience of RUSI staff and Associate Fellows and has fostered a growing network of cyber experts from both the public and private sectors and academia.
Our research agenda is structured around the following themes: cyber strategy, cyber resilience, cyber threats and offensive cyber. The team pursues different aspects of these themes, depending upon policy priorities at any given time.
Current research projects examine the implementation of the UK’s 2022 National Cyber Strategy, offensive cyber operations, technology and national security in the context of the Net Zero environmental transition, cyber insurance and ransomware, responsible cyber power, and cyber capacity building.
For more information on the Group’s work, see here.