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CVE at a Crossroads: A Blueprint for the Next 25 Years

Report

CVE at a Crossroads: A Blueprint for the Next 25 Years

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) Program is a critical public good, yet it is at a crossroads. Established by MITRE with support from the U.S. government, the index of software vulnerability identifiers has been a core element of software security since 1999. But recent funding issues have laid bare fundamental challenges, and without action, the vulnerability identification landscape will fragment. This report provides recommendations for global policymakers on how to reimagine the CVE Program for the next 25 years.
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures, CVE, Global Vulnerability Catalog, National Vulnerability Management Program, software, vulnerability identification, vulnerability management
October 8, 2025
Artificial Intelligence in Nuclear Command, Control & Communications: A Technical Primer

Report

Artificial Intelligence in Nuclear Command, Control & Communications: A Technical Primer

AI has been integral to nuclear weapons systems and operations for decades, but rapidly advancing “novel” models pose unforeseen technical opportunities. For the Institute for Security and Technology’s scenario-driven workshop on the integration of AI into NC3 systems, IST’s Sylvia Mishra and Philip Reiner co-authored a short primer to establish what constitutes 'novel' AI in the context of nuclear weapons decision-making.
AI, artificial intelligence, NC3, nuclear, system of systems
September 10, 2025
Improving Private Sector Cyber Victim Notification and Support

Report

Improving Private Sector Cyber Victim Notification and Support

Building off the Cyber Safety Review Board’s recommendation that cloud service providers work with mobile device platform vendors to develop an “amber alert”-style notification mechanism, IST Adjunct Advisor Rob Knake explores the challenges to developing the native-notification concept and lays out a roadmap for overcoming them.
cyber, incident response, Victim Notification
August 14, 2025
Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3): A Primer on Strategic Warning, Decision Support, and Adaptive Targeting Subsystems 

Report

Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3): A Primer on Strategic Warning, Decision Support, and Adaptive Targeting Subsystems 

Originally drafted to guide substantive discussions for a scenario-driven workshop hosted by IST in Washington, DC on the risks and opportunities of AI integration in NC3, this primer provides a technical and in-depth overview and analysis of strategic warning, decision support, and adaptive targeting subsystems that comprise the NC3 “system of systems.”
adaptive targeting, decision support, NC3, NC3 architecture, nuclear, strategic warning, system of systems
July 7, 2025
Securing the Signal: Mitigation Strategies to Strengthen Crisis Communication Channels

Report

Securing the Signal: Mitigation Strategies to Strengthen Crisis Communication Channels

As global norms are challenged and emerging technologies accelerate, crisis communication systems between nuclear-armed states face urgent new threats. This report identifies four critical scenarios and outlines a matched set of mitigation strategies designed to reinforce the reliability of crisis communications in high-stakes environments.
CATALINK, cold war, crisis communications, electromagnetic pulse, EMP, escalation, miscalculation, nuclear
May 28, 2025
Strengthening Nuclear Crisis Communications: Steps to Implement Mesh Networks to Enhance Resilience & Security

AAR, Report

Strengthening Nuclear Crisis Communications: Steps to Implement Mesh Networks to Enhance Resilience & Security

To advance work on secure crisis communications, IST convened a diverse group of experts for a technical workshop to explore potential avenues for improving the resilience of nuclear crisis communications networks, including IST’s CATALINK Initiative. In this report, IST’s Christian Steins shares critical takeaways from their discussion.
crisis communications, mesh network, nuclear weapon state, resilience, ROCCS
May 22, 2025
Navigating AI Compliance, Part 1: Tracing Failure Patterns in History

Report

Navigating AI Compliance, Part 1: Tracing Failure Patterns in History

What is the risk of compliance failure in AI foundation models, and how can it be mitigated? The AI Risk Reduction Initiative’s latest report analyzes the history of failures across industries in an effort to avoid future pitfalls, and offers practical frameworks and definitions for practitioners navigating the complex compliance landscape. The first of a two-part series, this report examines 11 case studies from AI-adjacent industries to identify three distinct failure categories: institutional, procedural, and performance.
artificial inteligence, compliance, cybersecurity, Future of Digital Security
December 10, 2024
Why Venture Capital Is Indispensable for U.S. Industrial Strategy: Activating Investors to Realize Disruptive National Capabilities

Report

Why Venture Capital Is Indispensable for U.S. Industrial Strategy: Activating Investors to Realize Disruptive National Capabilities

How can the U.S. realize disruptive national capabilities and establish technological leadership in the geostrategic competition with China? From IST’s Strategic Balancing Initiative, a new report calls for harnessing the power of the venture capital industry to unlock innovation, and offers insights for policymakers & practitioners.  
China, industrial strategy, quantum, research and development, techno-industrial competition, venture capital
October 15, 2024
The Implications of Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity: Shifting the Offense-Defense Balance

Report

The Implications of Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity: Shifting the Offense-Defense Balance

Advances in AI present key cybersecurity opportunities, but how might malicious actors utilize the same technology? IST’s latest report investigates the state of existing and potential integrations of AI in cybersecurity based on our research & interviews with industry stakeholders and puts forward 7 priority recommendations.
agentic, AI, artificial intelligence, cyber, cybersecurity, deepfakes, offense-defense balance, software
October 10, 2024
Unlocking U.S. Technological Competitiveness: Proposing Solutions to Public-Private Misalignments

Report

Unlocking U.S. Technological Competitiveness: Proposing Solutions to Public-Private Misalignments

This concept paper, the third and last working paper in the series, lays out how a third round of working group meetings further explored those initial solutions, building out specific ways to operationalize them, identifying specific questions that need to be addressed to achieve these goals, and suggesting potential mechanisms for achieving them
biotech, China, energy, industrial strategy, quantum
June 28, 2024
Use-Cases of Resilient Nuclear Crisis Communications: A View from Russia

Report

Use-Cases of Resilient Nuclear Crisis Communications: A View from Russia

This report delves into resilient nuclear crisis communications from the Russian perspective, examines several documents and actions taken by Russia political leadership on both nuclear and non-nuclear instances of crisis communications, and concludes by stressing the importance of cooperation between leaders in Moscow and Washington:
nuclear crisis communications, nuclear risk reduction, Russia
June 26, 2024
Pakistan: Mitigating Nuclear Risks Through Crisis Communications

Report

Pakistan: Mitigating Nuclear Risks Through Crisis Communications

This brief explores the history of crisis communications from the perspective of Pakistan, unpacks the history of nuclear crisis communications between Pakistan and India, and calls for a multilateral crisis communication mechanism in South Asia to enhance regional stability and security, noting the necessity for neutral party engagement.
nuclear crisis communications, nuclear risk reduction, Pakistan, South Asia
June 26, 2024
Resilient Nuclear Crisis Communications: India’s Experience

Report

Resilient Nuclear Crisis Communications: India’s Experience

This short paper examines the manner in which the existing hotlines have been used in the India-Pakistan dyad. It also identifies some challenges posed to these channels and how these need to be overcome. 
India, nuclear crisis communications, nuclear risk reduction, Pakistan
June 26, 2024
Ransomware Task Force: Doubling Down

Progress Report, Report

Ransomware Task Force: Doubling Down

While the U.S. government and its partners made great strides in combating ransomware in 2023, attacks have only increased. Of the 48 recommendations made in the original RTF Report, our assessment remains unchanged from a year ago: only 24 have seen significant progress.
cybersecurity, incident reporting, ransom payments, Ransomware
April 24, 2024
Information Sharing in the Ransomware Payment Ecosystem: Exploring the Delta Between Best Practices and Existing Mechanisms

Report

Information Sharing in the Ransomware Payment Ecosystem: Exploring the Delta Between Best Practices and Existing Mechanisms

IST's latest report pulls from a recent attack scenario exercise performed by the Ransomware Task Force's Payments Working Group, comparing the results to information sharing case studies including the Hive disruption operation, the Emotet botnet takedown, and the Colonial Pipeline ransom recovery.
Colonial Pipeline, cybersecurity, Emotet, Hive, ransom payments, Ransomware
April 17, 2024
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