Arizona’s top cybersecurity official is warning that state and local governments cannot stand alone against sophisticated nation-state cyber threats, stressing that defending against adversaries such as the China-linked “Salt Typhoon” requires collective action across government, industry, and international partners.
Ryan Murray, chief information security officer (CISO) for the state of Arizona, said during the Billington CyberSecurity Summit in Washington on Sept. 10 that cybersecurity is a “collective defense problem.”
“I think we’re a little bit unique in Arizona that we’ve taken this challenge and said that cybersecurity is homeland security, it is national security. This is not just a technology problem to be solved,” Murray said.
“Frankly speaking, we’re seeing all of the nation states that are potentially adversarial knocking on our doors every single day, and specifically Salt Typhoon,” he added.
Salt Typhoon – a threat actor affiliated with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) – is one of the most significant U.S. breaches to date. The China-linked hacking group compromised networks at multiple telecommunications companies to target President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and associates of former Vice President Kamala Harris.
The hacking group also targeted National Guard networks for attacks between March and December 2024.
“We’ve been talking for years now, for as long as I can remember, that China is pre-positioning themselves within our critical infrastructure. Now this is that writ large across our nation and our globe,” Murray said.
“It’s a team sport,” he said, adding, “This is something that we all need to work together on … especially at state and local government, because, frankly speaking, none of us are resourced well enough to be able to do it alone in the first place.”
To bridge the gap, Murray said that Arizona is pursuing creative approaches, such as student-led cybersecurity programs at community colleges. These efforts aim to protect local communities while also training the cyber workforce of the future.
“Our local governments don’t have the resources to hire talent,” Murray said. “So, how do we find these creative, win-win solutions, where I can put students directly to work defending their own communities and give them the skills so they can go on into industry or into better technology jobs in the future?”
“Because if we just continue to do this the way that we’ve always done this, it’s not going to work,” he warned.
