Trump’s Risky Hack-Back Plan

Situation Report A weekly digest of national security, defense, and cybersecurity news from Foreign Policy reporters John Haltiwanger and Rishi Iyengar. S. president wants tech companies to go on the cyber-offensive. Will it work? , a staff writer at Foreign Policy, and Rishi Iyengar, a staff writer at Foreign Policy. The Microsoft logo is seen here on a building. The Microsoft logo is seen at an experience center on Fifth Avenue in New York City on April 3, 2024. Santiago/ September 17, 2026, PM Welcome back to Foreign Policy’s Situation Report. This is our last “regular” edition before we bring you a series of special daily pop-ups from the United Nations General Assembly high-level week (or UNGA, as you might know it) in New York next week! John and Rishi will both be having a bunch of interesting conversations both on and offstage at FP’s smorgasbord of sideline summits—and we’ll be in your inbox as always. Reach out if you’d like to connect or have something interesting to share. Alright, here’s what’s on tap for the day: Trump’s cyber-offense plans for the private sector, the AI doomsday panic, and the ever-out-of-reach U. Welcome back to Foreign Policy’s Situation Report. This is our last “regular” edition before we bring you a series of special daily pop-ups from the United Nations General Assembly high-level week (or UNGA, as you might know it) in New York next week! John and Rishi will both be having a bunch of interesting conversations both on and offstage at FP’s smorgasbord of sideline summits—and we’ll be in your inbox as always. Reach out if you’d like to connect or have something interesting to share. Alright, here’s what’s on tap for the day: Trump’s cyber-offense plans for the private sector, the AI doomsday panic, and the ever-out-of-reach U. Among the many upheavals to U. S. foreign policy in President Donald Trump’s second term thus far has been a fundamental reshaping of the way that Washington approaches cyberwarfare. The Trump administration (with Elon Musk’s help) has made massive cuts to the U. S. government’s cyber posture, cutting staff and programs at organizations such as the State Department and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). But that has been accompanied by a push to conduct more offensive cyberattacks against adversaries—as the United States did in both Venezuela and Iran—rather than simply defending U.