CYBERSECURITY WORRIES

It’s a bitter irony. Just at a time when the threat of cyberattacks appears to be growing, the funding available to keep cybercriminals at bay is far from keeping up with the risk

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Even though artificial intelligence systems have the capacity to help states and local governments protect themselves from cyberattacks, they’re also potentially powerful weapons in the hands of the bad guys. For example, AI allows cybercriminals the capacity to stage attacks on multiple computer systems simultaneously. What’s more, AI can undo the basic security measures that places take to protect themselves from cyberattacks.

As a McKinsey study published about a year ago stated “AI is accelerating the speed of AI attacks, with breakout times now often under an hour. The ability of hackers to use AI tools – from creating convincing phishing emails, fake websites and even deepfake videos to inject malicious prompter codes – allows cybercriminals to craft personalized realist messages that bypass traditional detection mechanisms.”

The threats of undetected cyberattacks go beyond the stereotypical idea that they could steal a community’s capacity to run its computers smoothly until so-called ransomware is paid. Consider the potential vulnerability of a community’s drinking or wastewater systems. A successful attack could conceivably open or close valves past their safety limits. This could cause underground water mains to rupture or destroy pumps that can take a long time to repair.

What’s more, if a cyberattack were to minimize or outright destroy the systems that keep our drinking water safe, you can imagine the kind of panic in the streets as residents’ safety is threatened and they try to stockpile every ounce of water on rapidly depleted supermarket shelves. Compromised wastewater systems could lead to the spread of disease.

Alarming? Indeed. And yet the budgeted dollars to deal with these threats is a matter of additional concern, In 2022, 35% of state Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) surveyed said that insufficient dollars were a problem as their states tried to deal with cybersecurity challenges. That rose to 35% in 2024 and to 59% in 2026, according to a NASCIO-Deloitte survey.

That survey was a real eye opener to us. For example, “As threats become more sophisticated, far fewer CISOs expressed confidence in their ability to secure public data. The percentage of CISOs who characterized themselves as “extremely” or “very confident” has dropped dramatically, from 48% in 2022 to 22% in 2026.”

The pullback on funding from the federal government contributed to these concerns. As U.S. Senator Mark Warner wrote in a mid-June letter to the executive director of CISA, “Governors, mayors, city and county executives, state chief information officers, school district leaders and education advocates, law enforcement, and cybersecurity experts have expressed grave concern at the state of CISA and its ability to function since the Trump administration curtailed CISA’s core functions and capabilities.

“While your efforts to restore some of CISA’s staffing are welcome, they appear insufficient given the scale of threats facing our nation’s cybersecurity and critical infrastructure, particularly at the state level. The experience, institutional knowledge, and trusted relationships built by career staff are irreplaceable assets and vital to supporting states and critical infrastructure owners and operators to defend against cyberthreats. States and industry have reported that the staffing turbulence at CISA has disrupted its service delivery and operations.”

All levels of government are at risk. Warner was addressing himself at threats to the states, but we believe that smaller entities may be the most vulnerable, given more limited staff and resources to cope with threats.

Since cyberattacks don’t necessarily respect the sanctity of borders, defenses against them shouldn’t be siloed into effort by individual entities. We can’t help think about the comic book heroes who individually were unable to fight off supervillains but joined forces into groups like the Avengers in order to save the world.

We’re strong supporters of the idea that governments work together to coordinate knowledge and assist each other at a fraction of the dollars it would cost any individual place. This is very similar to the way small communities are able to succeed in other fields. Our little town of Bethel shares fire department resources when a fire breaks out that’s beyond the capacity of Bethel’s volunteer department.

Ultimately working together means that when one entity has successfully identified and fended off a cyberattack, its neighbors can benefit from the lessons learned.

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