Three months after Hillary Clinton’s surprise defeat in the 2016 election, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a report concluding Russia’s President Putin had ordered the theft of data from the Democratic National Committee and Clinton campaign to mount an online influence campaign aimed at harming her electability and potential presidency. In response to this foreign intervention in the U.S. electoral process, members of Congress called for the formation of a bipartisan select committee to devise solutions to deter and defend against further cyberattacks. But this was not the first time a call had been raised to improve the security of America’s computer networks, and based upon the nation’s poor grasp of its own cyber history, will not the be the last. This paper explores the debates that surrounded the introduction of NSDD 145, the United States’ first cyber security directive, in 1984. The order, which sought to place the NSA at the heart of protecting America’s burgeoning computer networks in both the government and private sector from foreign penetration, became a lightning rod for dissent among Congress, private sector businesses, academics, and privacy campaigners alike. By exploring the motives of the directive’s architect, the cases put forward by its opponents, and the reasons for its eventual repudiation, this paper provides a better understanding of the enduring reasons behind America’s cyber insecurity. In doing so, it ensures historians are better informed in their efforts to place the current sense of vulnerability into a wider context, and that contemporary policymakers are better placed to approach the issue.

中文翻译：

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美国网络（In）安全的根源*

在希拉里·克林顿 (Hillary Clinton) 在 2016 年大选中出人意料地失败三个月后，国家情报总监办公室发布了一份报告，结论是俄罗斯总统普京下令窃取民主党全国委员会和克林顿竞选团队的数据，以发起一场旨在损害网络影响力的活动。她的选择和潜在总统职位。针对外国对美国选举进程的干预，国会议员呼吁成立一个两党特别委员会，以制定解决方案，以阻止和防御进一步的网络攻击。但这并不是第一次呼吁提高美国计算机网络的安全性，而且基于美国对自己网络历史的缺乏了解，这也不会是最后一次。本文探讨了围绕 1984 年引入美国第一个网络安全指令 NSDD 145 的争论。该命令旨在将 NSA 置于保护美国政府和私营部门迅速发展的计算机网络的核心位置来自外国的渗透，成为国会、私营部门企业、学术界和隐私活动家等异议人士的避雷针。通过探讨该指令制定者的动机、反对者提出的案例以及最终否决该指令的原因，本文提供了对美国网络不安全背后持久原因的更好理解。这样做可以确保历史学家在努力将当前的脆弱感置于更广泛的背景下时，能够更好地了解情况，