Cybersecurity & Defense - WestExec Advisors

Bridge Colby cited in The Japan Times article, “U.S. Plan to Fight China and Russia is Too Good To Be True”

"Second, horizontal escalation suffers from a time problem. Coercion — particularly economic coercion — takes a while to work. But in the meantime, analysts such as former Trump administration Pentagon official Elbridge Colby have pointed out that the aggressor will be consolidating its gains and fortifying a position from which it cannot easily be dislodged. While the U.S. is waiting for coercion to have its effect, the situation on the ground — and at the negotiating table — will be steadily [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:39:15-04:00July 12, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense, Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Michèle Flournoy featured on The Leadership Podcast

"On the show, Michèle discusses speaking truth to power, the importance of service in leadership, and what’s currently at stake right now. She shares her experience of co-leading President Obama’s transition team at the Defense Department. She also discusses her experience as the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense in the formulation of national security and defense policy, the role think-tanks play, and guidance for the next generation of leaders..." Download the full podcast here: Full Podcast

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:26:20-04:00June 5, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Lisa Monaco featured on Axios’s Season 2 premiere on HBO

"...This week's show also features a segment on the 'Greatest Global Threats' as summarized by leading national security experts from the last three administrations, including former national security adviser H.R. McMaster, former homeland security adviser and chief counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco, former secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, former secretary of defense, CIA director and White House chief of staff Leon Panetta and former CIA director David Petraeus..." Watch the full episode here: Full Episode

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:23:18-04:00June 2, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Lisa Monaco and Avril Haines featured in Hewlett’s recap of Verify 2019 conference

"Former Homeland Security Advisor Lisa Monaco said that 'if you look at the threat actors as basically aligned in a drag race—nation-states, non-state actors, hacktivists, criminal groups—my sense is that the nation-states have far and away set themselves apart,' adding that they are 'increasingly using cyber means as a tool of geopolitical one-upsmanship.' Examples such as Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections attest to that point and show that operational sophistication and tradecraft has improved... This increased sophistication has [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:30:15-04:00May 2, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Lisa Monaco quoted in The New York Times article, “In Push for 2020 Election Security, Top Official Was Warned: Don’t Tell Trump”

“'I do believe the Department of Homeland Security and the White House should be prioritizing this threat and should be doing so consistent with the intelligence community’s own assessment,' said Lisa Monaco, who was among officials who worked to counter Russian cyberinterference in 2016 as the White House homeland security adviser to Mr. Obama. "She said parts of Mr. Mueller’s report showed how the threat from Russia had grown..." Read the full article here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:32:00-04:00April 24, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Lisa Monaco and Nick Rasmussen quoted in The New York Times article, “Pointing a Finger at a Terrorist Group in the Aftermath of the Sri Lanka Blasts”

"Nicholas J. Rasmussen, a former director of the National Counterterrorism Center, said the presence of some Sri Lankan fighters in Syria and Iraq raised the prospect of informal connections with members of National Thowheeth Jama’ath still in Sri Lanka. “'It’s hard to imagine an attack of this complexity without some form of organization and support from a group that has done this kind of thing before,' Mr. Rasmussen said in an email. "Lisa Monaco, a former homeland security adviser for President [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:03:03-04:00April 22, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Bridge Colby quoted in The Wall Street Journal article, “U.S. Pacific Commander Seeks More Funding to Counter China”

“‘Nothing is more important’ than getting the commander at IndoPacom what he needs, said Elbridge Colby, who was instrumental in the writing of the National Defense Strategy when he worked at the Pentagon. “‘Some people just don’t think it’s possible that we could lose a war against China or Russia if the Department doesn’t change fast. I think that misplaced disbelief is behind a lot of the inertia,’ Mr. Colby said in an email. “‘The Department is shifting well for such [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:03:26-04:00April 17, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Lisa Monaco featured on Snack Break with Aroop Podcast

"Host Aroop Mukharji interviews Lisa Monaco, Assistant to President Obama for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism (2013-2017), about the greatest national security threats Americans face, misperception, fear, and Goldfish crackers." Download the full podcast here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:03:57-04:00April 15, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Lisa Monaco’s recent speech on the changing nature of cyberwar featured in The Washington Post’s “Daily 202”

"Lisa Monaco, who served as the homeland security adviser in Barack Obama’s White House, said many countries are changing how they approach the digital battlefield, from focusing primarily on espionage toward 'geopolitical one-upmanship.' “'The game is getting disrupted,' she said. 'If we had this conversation two and a half years ago, I would have described the threat I was seeing at the time as more diffuse, more sophisticated and more dangerous than at any other time in my career in government. [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:04:15-04:00April 15, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Liz Rosenberg featured on NPR to discuss Trump’s designation of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as a foreign terrorist group

"Advisers to President Trump say he wanted to take this step for a long time. Pentagon officials, though, have raised concerns about what this could mean on the ground. A former sanctions adviser, Elizabeth Rosenberg, puts it this way: 'People are concerned that it makes it more difficult to work together when necessary. Perhaps that means sharing information to make sure that there's not a military mishap...'" Listen to the full interview here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:05:11-04:00April 8, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense|