Running Interference: Protecting the Integrity of American Elections

 

The International Law Journal and National Security Law Journal, in partnership with NSI, invite you to watch our Fall 2020 virtual symposium – Running Interference: Protecting the Integrity of American Elections.  This event consisted of two panels on election security hot topics.

 

Panel 1: Trolls & Polls – Dangers and Risks of Misinformation

Friday, October 16 | 12:00-1:00 PM ET

Panelists discussed the role of fake news and disinformation in the 2016 election and whether we can expect similar issues leading up to November.  They discussed the main sources of fake news, the susceptibility of the 2020 election to fake news and disinformation, and potential legal issues to be aware of when confronting this issue.  This panel took place on Friday, October 16th from 12:00-1:00 pm, and featured:

  • The Honorable Susan M. Gordon, former Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence
  • Nikolas Guggenberger, Clinical Lecturer in Law at Yale University
  • Lisa Kaplan, NSI Visiting Fellow and founder of Alethea Group

moderated by

  • Jamil N. Jaffer, NSI Founder and Executive Director

 

 

Panel 2: Phishing for Truth – Securing the Election from Cyber Attacks

Friday, October 23 | 12:00-1:00 PM ET

Panelists engaged in a lively discussion of the recent Senate Intelligence Committee Report and will address Russia’s infiltration of the U.S. election process, investigations into particular destabilization techniques, the DNC hack, international legal ramifications, and lessons learned. This panel occurred on Friday, October 23rd, and featured:

  • Andy Keiser – NSI Fellow and Former Senior Advisor on the House Intelligence Committee
  • Megan Stifel, NSI Visiting Fellow and Executive Director, Americas, at the Global Cyber Alliance
  • Prof. Josephine Wolff, Assistant Professor of cybersecurity policy at the Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy

moderated by

  • Jamil N. Jaffer, NSI Founder and Executive Director

 

Speaker Bios:

 

Panel 1: Trolls & Polls – Dangers and Risks of Misinformation

 

The Honorable Susan M. Gordon – Ms. Gordon currently serves as a director for CACI International, Inc., E3 Federal Solutions, and as an advisor for Pallas Advisors, Primer.ai, and the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation.  In addition, she works as a consultant with Microsoft and as a contributor to CNBC.  From 2017 to 2019, Ms. Gordon served as Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.  Previously, Ms. Gordon served as the Deputy Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency from 2015 to 2017.  She started her career with the Central Intelligence Agency, serving for 27 years and rising to senior executive positions in each of the Agency’s four directorates.

 

 

Nikolas Guggenberger – Nikolas Guggenberger is a Clinical Lecturer in Law, Lecturer in Law, a Research Scholar in Law, and the Executive Director of the Information Society Project at Yale Law School. His research focuses on the intersection of law and technology, specifically platform regulation, privacy, the automation of law, and the future of private law. He is especially interested in artificial intelligence and algorithmic governance. Guggenberger has frequently advised government entities, served as an expert witness and on advisory committees, mainly on matters relating to financial technology, financial markets regulation, digital policy, and media law.

 

 

 

Lisa Kaplan – NSI Visiting Fellow Lisa Kaplan founded Alethea Group to help organizations navigate the new digital reality and protect themselves against disinformation.  Kaplan served as digital director for Senator Angus King’s reelection campaign in 2018, where she designed and executed a proactive and defensive digital strategy to identify, understand, and respond to disinformation campaigns.  She is among the few people who can share firsthand experience from the campaign trail.  She previously worked as a consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to the U.S. Department of State, and served as an aide in the United States Senate.

 

 

Moderated by:

 

Jamil N. Jaffer – Jamil is the Founder and Executive Director of the National Security Institute, and an Assistant Professor of Law and Director of the National Security Law & Policy Program at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University.  Jamil is also Senior Vice President for Strategy, Partnerships & Corporate Development at IronNet Cybersecurity, a technology products startup founded by Gen (ret.) Keith B. Alexander, the former Director of the National Security Agency and Founding Commander of U.S. Cyber Command.  In addition, Jamil is an advisor to Beacon Global Strategies, a strategic advisory firm; 4iQ, a deep and dark web intelligence startup; Duco, a technology platform startup that connects corporations with geopolitical and international business experts; and Amber, a digital authentication and verification startup.

 

 

 

Panel 2: Phishing for Truth – Securing the Election from Cyber Attacks         

 

Andy Keiser – NSI Fellow Andy Keiser served for 14 years on Capitol Hill for former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers – as Senior Advisor to the Committee, Chief of Staff, and Legislative Director handling all national security policy issues.  As Deputy National Security Senior Advisor to the Trump transition team, Mr. Keiser prepared and advised the transition’s policy, personnel, and agency action teams on all aspects of the national security portfolio.  This included work in the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, State, the Intelligence Community, and the National Security Council.  Mr. Keiser was also the head writer for a nationally syndicated radio program and assisted in the production of the CNN series “Declassified.”

 

 

Megan Stifel – NSI Visiting Fellow Megan Stifel is an attorney and the founder of Silicon Harbor Consultants.  She currently serves as Senior Policy Counsel at the Global Cyber Alliance and is a Nonresident Senior Fellow in the Atlantic Council’s Cyber Statecraft Initiative.  Prior to that, Megan served as Cybersecurity Policy Director at Public Knowledge.  Megan previously served as a Director for International Cyber Policy at the National Security Council (NSC).  Prior to the NSC, Ms. Stifel served in the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) as Director for Cyber Policy in the National Security Division and as counsel in the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.

 

 

Prof. Josephine Wolff – Josephine Wolff is Assistant Professor of cybersecurity policy at the Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.  Her research interests include the social and economic costs of cybersecurity incidents, cyber-insurance, Internet regulation, and security responsibilities and liability of online intermediaries.  Her book “You’ll See This Message When It Is Too Late: The Legal and Economic Aftermath of Cybersecurity Breaches” was published by MIT Press in 2018.  She is a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times and her writing on cybersecurity has also appeared in Slate, The Washington Post, Lawfare, The Atlantic, and Wired.

 

 

Moderated by:

 

Jamil N. Jaffer – Jamil is the Founder and Executive Director of the National Security Institute, and an Assistant Professor of Law and Director of the National Security Law & Policy Program at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University.  Jamil is also Senior Vice President for Strategy, Partnerships & Corporate Development at IronNet Cybersecurity, a technology products startup founded by Gen (ret.) Keith B. Alexander, the former Director of the National Security Agency and Founding Commander of U.S. Cyber Command.  In addition, Jamil is an advisor to Beacon Global Strategies, a strategic advisory firm; 4iQ, a deep and dark web intelligence startup; Duco, a technology platform startup that connects corporations with geopolitical and international business experts; and Amber, a digital authentication and verification startup.