The US has suspended operations and planning for offensive cyber operations against Russia, a senior US official told CNN.
The suspension is “a major blow,” the official said, especially since planning for such operations takes time and research to carry out. The concern, the official said, is that the pause on offensive cyber operations against Russia will make the US more vulnerable to potential cyberattacks from Moscow, which has a formidable cadre of hackers capable of disrupting US critical infrastructure and collecting sensitive intelligence.
The pause in operations and planning from US Cyber Command, the military’s offensive and defensive cyber unit, comes as the Trump administration has sought a broader détente with Russia.
“Due to operational security concerns, we do not comment nor discuss cyber intelligence, plans, or operations. There is no greater priority to Secretary Hegseth than the safety of the warfighter in all operations, to include the cyber domain,” a senior defense official told CNN, referring to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
The Record first reported on Cyber Command’s suspension of planning related to Russia.
Some background: The Kremlin sees cyberspace as a source of tactical advantage with the US, as it can burrow into US critical infrastructure and try to influence elections. For their part, American military and intelligence hackers have in recent years increasingly gone after Russian cybercriminals and intelligence operatives.
