Ex-NSA boss: Election security focus helped dissuade increase in Russian meddling with U.S.

Russia appears to be having second thoughts on how aggressively, or at least how visibly, it attempts to influence American elections, according to a former head of the NSA.

Mike Rogers, a McCrary Institute advisory board member, is a retired US Navy admiral who was head of the surveillance agency and US Cyber Command between 2014 and 2018; his Navy career spanned decades. Since leaving the service, he has held roles in the commercial security space, and is now operating partner at Israeli security investment group Team8.

He spoke to The Register this month about American politics and adversaries including Russia; the effect of AI on the threat landscape; and the balancing act between government and commercial security.