Twenty-five years after the September 11 attacks, former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff joins Frank Cilluffo for a firsthand account of that day and the national security transformation that followed.

Chertoff recalls arriving at the FBI command center as the attacks unfolded, hearing the order to shoot down the fourth plane and confronting the urgent question of whether more attacks were coming. He also describes the information-sharing barriers exposed by 9/11 and the effort to bring agencies with different missions and cultures together under the newly created Department of Homeland Security.

The conversation then turns to the threats facing the country today. Chertoff explains why terrorism has become more distributed and difficult to detect, how cyberattacks and artificial intelligence are changing homeland security, and why the United States must remain vigilant without treating every risk as something that can be eliminated entirely.

Main topics

• Michael Chertoff's memories of September 11
• Building DHS and breaking down information silos
• How the terrorist threat has evolved
• Cyber, AI and critical infrastructure
• Vigilance and managing risk

Key quotes

"Within minutes after I arrived, we heard about the third plane hitting the Pentagon, and then I remember sitting in the command center and hearing the order being relayed to shoot down the fourth plane." — Michael Chertoff

"If you don't coordinate at the federal level, you run the risk of again having another missed opportunity to stop a terrorist attack." — Michael Chertoff

"We've undermined those big terrorist organizations, but now we have very small networks or even individuals who are acting because they're being prompted or even on their own, they're getting radicalized." — Michael Chertoff

"The distributed nature of terrorism now, and the fact that we now have domestic terrorists, indigenous to the U.S., means that the process of detecting is much more difficult." — Michael Chertoff

"The problem has not gone away. It's simply altered and modified and evolved." — Michael Chertoff

"What you have to do is manage the risk by understanding what's a reasonable amount of risk you have to tolerate." — Michael Chertoff

Links and resources

About the Guest

Michael Chertoff served as U.S. secretary of homeland security from 2005 to 2009, following roles as a federal appeals court judge and assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Criminal Division. He previously supervised the Justice Department's investigation into the 9/11 attacks and is the author of Exploding Data: Reclaiming Our Cyber Security in the Digital Age. He is now co-founder and executive chairman of the Chertoff Group, a global security risk management and advisory firm.

In this episode of Cyber Focus, host Frank Cilluffo sits down with Harry Krejsa, Director of Studies at Carnegie Mellon University's Institute for Strategy and Technology. Krejsa, a former Pentagon and White House cyber strategist, discusses his latest report, Sunshield, which highlights the intersection of cybersecurity, U.S.-China competition, and grid security. The conversation explores how China's cyber operations exploit technical debt in U.S. critical infrastructure, the cybersecurity risks and opportunities in the energy transition, and how the rapid buildout of AI-driven power demand presents both new challenges and unique opportunities. Krejsa outlines strategic actions the U.S. must take to secure its energy future and broader critical infrastructure against Chinese cyber threats.

Main Topics Covered

• China's cyber threat to U.S. critical infrastructure, including Volt Typhoon's activities
• The risks of integrating old and new technology in the energy sector
• How the energy transition presents a unique chance to embed cybersecurity from the start
• The role of AI data centers in reshaping U.S. energy infrastructure and security
• Key policy actions needed to reduce U.S. dependency on Chinese-dominated supply chains
• Lessons from the financial sector in managing systemic cybersecurity risks

Key Quotes

"The People's Republic of China, we now know, are working to place disruptive and destructive cyber capabilities on various kinds of American infrastructure... to stymie our ability to mobilize a military response to a crisis... [and] induced societal panic." — Harry Krejsa

"No critical infrastructure sector in the country has the amount of capital necessary to undergo that [security] transformation, except for one... the electricity sector." — Harry Krejsa

"I think we need to put modern energy at the center of our competition with China." — Harry Krejsa

"We need to get the glowering national security hawks like myself, and the affirmative vision granola crunching energy communities sitting down and talking to each other." — Harry Krejsa

"The IT-OT convergence has been a theme we come back to over and over because it is very real. Yet if you look at our defenders, we still don't look at it through the same lens." — Frank Cilluffo

Relevant Links

SUN SHIELD: How Clean Tech & America's Energy Expansion Can Stop Chinese Cyber Threats

Guest Bio

Harry Krejsa is the Director of Studies at Carnegie Mellon University's Institute for Strategy and Technology. A former White House and Pentagon cyber strategist, he played a key role in shaping the National Cyber Strategy and served on the Cyberspace Solarium Commission. His expertise spans China's cyber operations, critical infrastructure security, and the intersection of emerging technology with national defense.

In this episode of Cyber Focus, host Frank Cilluffo speaks with Cynthia Brumfield, a prolific cybersecurity journalist and analyst. Brumfield discusses her reporting on the human toll of cybersecurity incidents, including mental health challenges and burnout among cyber professionals. She also explores the evolving role of deception technology in cyber defense and highlights key cybersecurity provisions in the latest National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The conversation covers the growing threats posed by foreign adversaries, including China, and the importance of resilience in cybersecurity operations.

Main Topics Covered:

• The mental health impact of cybersecurity incidents and the need for better support systems
• Deception technology and its role in cyber defense beyond traditional honeypots
• Cybersecurity funding and policy changes in the NDAA, including a $30 billion investment in military cyber operations
• The rise of ransomware and its classification as a national security threat
• The establishment of the NSA's AI Security Center and its implications for national security
• Supply chain security concerns, including Chinese technology risks in ports and telecommunications

Key Quotes:

"I don't think I realized until I wrote it and having talked to all the folks who have gone through this... I don't think I realized how traumatic it is to be in the middle of a cybersecurity incident. In fact, it's very much like any other emergency situation." – Cynthia Brumfield

"You need to lay the baseline of an appropriate emotional and psychological response to these incidents before they occur, so that you don't have the burnout, that you don't have the PTSD." – Cynthia Brumfield

"[Deception technology] is basically this term of coming up with a very broad strategic goal of tricking the enemy and getting them lured into dead ends on your network." – Cynthia Brumfield

"I think [the Cyber Force discussion] has legs this time... There's some momentum on this. I'm getting asked more and more and more questions, including from skeptics." – Frank Cilluffo

"It's important when we're talking about Chinese supply chain threats and espionage threats to sort of separate the wheat from the chaff. There are some serious concerns... but we have to have a much more sophisticated grasp on what are the true threats and what are not really true." – Cynthia Brumfield

Relevant Links and Resources:

https://www.metacurity.com/

Managing the emotional toll cybersecurity incidents can take on your team

Increasing the response level to ransomware

Tricking the bad guys

Guest Bio:
Cynthia Brumfield is a leading cybersecurity journalist and analyst, writing for publications such as CSO Online. She runs Metacurity.com, a cybersecurity news site, and has been covering the field for over a decade. Her work focuses on cyber policy, national security, and emerging threats, with an emphasis on making complex issues accessible to a broad audience.