Donald Trump's Adviser: The US Must Be More Firm Against Cyber Attackers

Donald Trump, and Republican security adviser Mike Waltz, (photo: x @demiligwaltz)

JAKARTA The administration of the elected US President Donald Trump plans to review the steps to impose heavier sanctions on individual and state actors who carry out cyber attacks on the United States. This was revealed by Trump's future national security adviser, Republican Representative Mike Waltz, on Sunday 15 December.

This statement follows US accusations against China's massive cyber espionage campaign known as Salt Typhoon. The campaign is claimed to target and record telephone conversations of senior US political figures.

The White House stated that at least eight telecommunications and infrastructure companies in the United States had been victims, with the metadata of large numbers of US citizens stolen during the espionage.

Waltz did not specifically mention what steps the Trump administration would take regarding Salt Typhoon. However, he stressed a more aggressive approach to cyber threats.

"We need to start taking offensive steps and give more severe consequences to individual and state actors who continue to steal our data and spy on us," Waltz said in the Face the Nation program on CBS News.

Waltz criticized the US approach so far which has focused more on strengthening cyber defenses. He argues that this approach needs to be balanced with offensive measures to provide a deterrent effect to those who carry out cyber attacks.

In addition, Waltz highlighted the role of the US technology industry in helping to protect the country while exploiting enemy weaknesses. "Our private technology industry can help make our enemies more vulnerable, as well as support our defense," he added.

China itself has strongly denied the allegations of cyber espionage. Chinese officials previously called the allegations disinformation and asserted that Beijing "firmly opposes and combats cyberattacks and data theft in all forms."

The Salt Typhoon case is one of a series of cyber threats that the United States is increasingly facing. The upcoming Trump administration seems to want to take a more assertive approach to dealing with this threat, both from state and individual actors.

Cyber attacks like this not only steal important data but also have the potential to damage critical infrastructure and weaken national security. A new approach that balances strong defense and offensive measures is one of the main priorities of the upcoming government.

With this background, US efforts to tighten regulations and collaboration with the private sector are expected to strengthen national cybersecurity and at the same time send a firm message to cyberattack perpetrators.