175: The Tragedy of Federal IT Procurement
This episode is dominated by IT procurement news. And it’s as irresistible as a twelve-car pileup on the Beltway. We open the news with an exploration of the federal de-listing of Kaspersky Labs, and how seriously government contracts lawyers take such an action (h/t to Michael Mutek…
Episode 173: Interview with Richard Ledgett
Today we deliver the second half of our bifurcated holiday podcast with an interview of Richard Ledgett, recently retired from his tour as NSA’s deputy director. We cover much recent history, from Putin’s election adventurism to questions about whether NSA can keep control of the cyberweapons it develops. …
Episode 171. Implants in the Kremlin’s Snack Machines?
Our guest, Ellen Nakashima, was coauthor of a Washington Post article that truly is a first draft of history, though not a chapter the Obama administration is likely to be proud of. She and Greg Miller and Adam Entous chronicle the story of Russia’s information operations…
Episode 164: Stewart on the Road to Tarsus
Episode 164 features Stewart Baker’s startling change of heart on the question of cyberspace norms. Credit goes to our interview guest, Tim Maurer, Fellow and co-director of the Cyber Policy Initiative at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. And perhaps as well to Brian Egan, former…
Episode 162: The Law of Armed Vibrators
In this episode, I debate Michael Schmitt, a prime mover in two Talinn Manuals on international law and cyber operations. We are joined by an expert on the topic and a new Steptoe partner, Brian Egan, who was formerly the State Department legal adviser, among other accomplishments. …
Episode 158 is a bonus episode – the Triple Entente Beer Summit, where members of the Steptoe Cyberlaw Podcast, the Lawfare Podcast, and the Rational Security Podcast assemble over beer to comment on the events of the week – or in this case, the day, since it was among the most news-filled days of President…
156: Interview with Michael Daniel
Our interview is with Michael Daniel, former Special Assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator at the White House and current President of the Cyber Threat Alliance. We ask Michael how the new guys are doing in his job, what he most regrets not getting done, why we didn’t float…
Posse Comitatus: Latin for “Get off my turf”?
Would it violate the Posse Comitatus Act to give DOD a bigger role in cybersecurity? Michael Vatis and I call BS on the idea, which I ascribe to Trump Derangement Syndrome and Michael more charitably ascribes to a DOD-DHS turf fight.
Should the FDA allow implants of…
Episode 145: What Donald Trump and “Occupy Wall Street” have in common
We interview two contributors to CSIS’s Cybersecurity Agenda for the 45th President. Considering the track record of the last three Presidents, it’s hard to be optimistic, but Davis Hake and Nico Sell offer a timely look at some of the most pressing policy…
We start 2017 the way we ended 2016, mocking the left/lib bias of stories about intercept law. Remember the European Court of Justice decision that undermined the UK’s new Investigatory Powers Act and struck down bulk data retention laws around Europe? Yeah, well, not so much. Maury Shenk walks us through the decision and explains…
