President Biden’s blurring of the line between the public and private sector in cyberspace has Republicans worried the administration’s future digital security policies will jeopardize online freedoms.
Sen. Josh Hawley pressured nominee Harry Coker on Thursday to explain whether he would resist efforts to use the National Cyber Director position to strongarm social media companies to censor speech.
Mr. Coker, a veteran of the National Security Agency and CIA, is Mr. Biden’s nominee to oversee federal cyber policy.
Mr. Coker told the Missouri Republican he would meet with anyone needed to strengthen America’s digital defenses, but he saw no role for the director’s office to restrict speech.
“I am a proponent, a strong proponent, of First and Fourth Amendment, free speech and privacy,” Mr. Coker said at the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on his nomination. “I do not see any role in ONCD in that area.”
Mr. Hawley replied that Mr. Coker’s answer was good to hear because cybersecurity is often cited as a justification for online censorship conducted by Big Tech companies.
“The biggest corporations on the planet with the most extensive control of speech on the planet and our government, our government, used them, turned them into an arm of itself and went in [some] cases post by post and said take this down, take that down, censor this person,” Mr. Hawley said.
While Mr. Coker expressed opposition to the government encouraging digital censorship, he made clear that the Biden administration intends to continue working arm-in-arm with private tech firms.
Mr. Biden’s team has forged new partnerships between its law enforcement and national security agencies and businesses’ cybersecurity professionals to fight hackers under the auspices of the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative.
Mr. Coker said he views private cybersecurity firms as being on the digital frontlines fighting America’s battles in cyberspace.
“I can use an analogy, it’s not perfect but it’s close enough — they’re on the frontline fighting the threats every day,” he said. “You can say that’s a combatant command if you will and, in this case, the supporting command would be ONCD and others in the federal government.”
Federal cyber officials bristle at descriptions of their work with private firms as involving offensive operations or similar to military action because of fears that such depictions would provide cyberattackers new reasons to target civilian networks.
Amb. Nathaniel C. Fick told The Washington Times in June that businesses cannot successfully fight back against China, Russia, and other countries’ cyberattackers.
The inaugural leader of the State Department’s cyberspace bureau said the U.S. government must have monopoly power on the legitimate use of force in American society.
“We really need companies not to pick fights that only the government can then finish,” Mr. Fick said. “That’s where I draw the bright red line.”
Mr. Coker will have a substantial say in where and how the lines get drawn in digital battles. The Biden administration unveiled a national cybersecurity strategy in March and an implementation plan in July.
If confirmed, Mr. Coker will take a lead role in applying the strategy that includes more anticipated regulation for businesses.
