NSI will convene a panel discussion on Disinformation Campaigns and Covert Influence in the United States: Legal Challenges and Policy Responses as part of Phi Alpha Delta’s 63rd Biennial Convention and Leadership Conference.

Foreign adversaries, such as China, Russia and Iran, have long sought to sow division in the United States and undermine national institutions through information operations such as cyberattacks or disinformation campaigns, particularly during elections. Advances in digital technology have created new vulnerabilities and enabled states to engage in an unprecedented level of destabilizing covert influence. Amidst the novel coronavirus crisis, there is significant evidence that foreign adversaries have launched disinformation campaigns to undermine public trust in democratic institutions and to prevent effective public health responses. This panel will examine information operations related to elections and the COVID-19 pandemic launched by foreign actors, review the toolkit of responses available to US government actors, and examine whether the current national security legal and policy regime is sufficient to address these fast-evolving threats to US elections systems and critical infrastructure entities, including healthcare institutions.

Matthew Ferraro will speak along with NSI Visiting Fellow and Founder of Alethea Group Lisa Kaplan and NSI Visiting Fellow and former National Security Council Director for International Cyber Policy Megan Stifel. NSI Founder and Executive Director Jamil N. Jaffer will moderate the panel.