President Donald Trump is opening a new front in the form of a Private Cyber Army in the United States’ fight against cybercrime, one that could put private American companies directly into offensive operations against foreign criminal groups.
A presidential memorandum issued by Trump directs the US government to build a program under which vetted companies can conduct surveillance, penetrate computer networks and disrupt the operations of foreign cyber-enabled criminal organizations. In some approved scenarios, companies could be permitted to manipulate, disrupt or physically destroy cyber networks.
But this is not a blanket permission slip for companies to launch their own cyberattacks.
Every participating firm would operate under federal direction and oversight, proposed missions would require government approval, and companies would have to put up at least $1 million in a bond or escrow that could be forfeited if they break the program’s rules.
The White House has given the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice 60 days to establish operating procedures, making the implementation phase almost as important as the memorandum itself.
So what exactly is Trump’s cyber offensive program, who could take part, and how far would private companies be allowed to go?
What is Donald Trump’s Cyber Offensive Program?
At its core, the initiative is an attempt to add private-sector cyber capabilities to operations that have traditionally remained largely in government hands.
Trump’s memorandum directs the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security to establish a system in which vetted US companies can carry out offensive cyber operations against foreign criminal organizations involved in attacks, fraud and other cyber-enabled schemes targeting Americans.
The administration says the program is intended to expand the government’s capacity to disrupt cybercrime networks by drawing on private-sector technical expertise.
The memorandum describes the targets as “foreign cyber-enabled transnational criminal organizations.” Participating firms could conduct surveillance as well as cyber operations designed to disrupt those organizations.
Trump has argued that cybercrime schemes covered by the initiative cost the United States tens of billions of dollars each year.
The important distinction is that these companies would not be choosing targets or launching operations on their own. They would be acting as government partners within a federally controlled program.
What could private companies actually do?
The authority envisioned by the memorandum goes beyond helping the government investigate an attack after it happens.
Depending on the approved operation, private companies could be allowed to infiltrate criminal networks, monitor them, sabotage their infrastructure and disrupt the systems they use.
The memorandum states that in some scenarios corporations could receive permission to manipulate, disrupt or physically destroy cyber networks.
That makes the program considerably more aggressive than conventional corporate cybersecurity, where companies generally defend their own networks, investigate intrusions and provide threat intelligence.
It also explains why the proposal is attracting attention well beyond the technology industry. The government is effectively creating a framework through which private companies could take part in offensive operations overseas while acting under federal authority.
There is no unrestricted licence to ‘hack back’
Despite the scope of the initiative, the memorandum puts boundaries around what can be authorized.
Co-executive directors from the Justice Department and DHS are expected to review proposed operations, with approved missions requiring written authorization. Participating companies will also have to meet standards covering technical capability and personnel vetting.
The program’s leadership cannot authorize surveillance or disruption operations that would kill or seriously injure people, or that would amount to the use of force or an armed attack under international law.
That distinction matters because “hack back” is often used to describe private organizations retaliating directly against attackers. Trump’s program is narrower. The companies involved would be executing specifically approved operations under government control rather than independently pursuing suspected hackers.
Why companies need a $1 million bond
One of the program’s most unusual safeguards is financial.
Companies accepted into the initiative will have to maintain a bond or escrow worth at least $1 million. The money can be forfeited if the company violates its contractual obligations or the program’s rules.
The requirement gives Washington a direct financial mechanism for enforcing compliance, although the full standards governing participation are still being developed.
The White House has instructed DHS and DOJ to create those operating procedures within 60 days.
Those rules are expected to cover company eligibility, operational coordination with the US military and intelligence community, and requirements for companies to report useful information they uncover about criminal organizations.
The memorandum also calls for participation from both large companies with substantial capacity and smaller firms that may be more suitable for specialised or discrete operations.
What happens if a company hits an American system?
The program also has to deal with one of the biggest problems in offensive cybersecurity: networks and identities do not always fit neatly inside national borders.
Participating companies will be required to stop an operation and alert the government if they inadvertently target a US person or US information system.
The Justice Department must also ensure that operations involving US persons, or those raising constitutional and legal questions, comply with applicable laws and judicial authorization requirements.
These restrictions are meant to create a legal firewall around operations, but they do not eliminate every possible complication.
Criminal organizations may store stolen American data on the systems being targeted, while some hacking groups that appear to be independent have relationships with foreign governments. That makes determining who is genuinely a criminal actor, and who might effectively be operating on behalf of a state, a particularly sensitive part of the process.
The memorandum says eligible targets cannot be institutional parts of foreign governments or wholly operated under the direction of one.
Why people are comparing it to ‘letters of marque’
One of the more striking descriptions of Trump’s approach is the idea of a digital version of “letters of marque.”
Historically, letters of marque allowed governments to authorize privately owned ships to attack designated enemies or pirates.
Ari Redbord, head of government affairs at blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs, used the phrase “cyber letters of marque” when describing the new approach.
The historical comparison has also appeared in the political debate surrounding private cyber operations.
Utah Senator Mike Lee introduced legislation aimed at reviving the constitutional practice of issuing “letters of marque and reprisal,” a mechanism used during the American Revolutionary War to authorize civilian ship owners to attack enemy vessels.
Jeffrey Gray, a veteran of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, described the policy as the United States reviving “privateering for the digital age.”
The analogy is not exact, however. Under Trump’s memorandum, companies would remain subject to federal contracts, mission approval and government supervision.
Why the plan is controversial?
Giving companies offensive cyber authorities raises a different set of risks from hiring them to protect networks or analyze malware.
A cyber operation can move beyond its intended target. Infrastructure used by criminal groups can overlap with legitimate systems, and some organizations accused of cybercrime may have connections to foreign governments.
Cybersecurity experts have warned that an operation aimed at a criminal gang could therefore create diplomatic or security consequences if it affects state-linked infrastructure.
Companies themselves could also become targets for retaliation.
Some businesses have previously been reluctant to participate in private offensive cyber schemes because of concerns about legal protections and possible retaliation from nation states.
Another practical problem is coordination.
The new procedures are supposed to prevent private operations from interfering with missions already being conducted by the US military or intelligence agencies. But sharing enough information to avoid such conflicts could be difficult because government cyber operations are often highly classified.
Why the private sector matters to Trump’s cyber fight
The administration’s argument is that America possesses substantial cybersecurity expertise outside government, and that those capabilities have not been fully used in offensive operations against transnational criminal groups.
The White House memo directs federal agencies to incorporate what it calls the “ingenuity of the private sector” into the fight against global cyber threats.
Some major technology companies have already publicly discussed their willingness to help governments combat cybercrime. The Financial Times reported that Google and Microsoft have touted their readiness to assist government efforts, while other US technology groups have privately supported greater private-sector participation.
Whether companies will ultimately embrace the new program is less certain.
Offensive cyber operations carry legal, operational and reputational risks that ordinary cybersecurity contracts do not. The secret nature of many missions may also prevent participating firms from publicly discussing their work.
What happens next?
The immediate story is not that US companies can now begin attacking foreign hackers whenever they choose.
The next key stage is the 60-day rulemaking period.
DHS and the Justice Department must determine how companies will qualify, how operations will be approved, how targets will be vetted, how missions will be coordinated with intelligence and military agencies, and what reporting obligations participants will face.
Only after that framework is established will the practical shape of Trump’s cyber offensive program become clearer.
What the memorandum has already done is redraw an important boundary in American cybersecurity policy. Private companies have spent years helping the government defend networks, investigate breaches and understand adversaries. Trump’s plan creates a pathway for selected firms to move from helping identify the attacker to potentially taking part in the operation against them.
The government will still choose the targets and control the missions. But for the companies selected to participate, America’s cyber fight could soon become an offensive one too.
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