The software the FBI is deleting is malicious code installed by hackers to take control of a victims computer.
Hackers have used the code to access vast amounts of private email messages and to launch ransomware attacks.
The authority the Justice Department relied on and the way the FBI carried out the operation set important precedents.
Public-private cooperation is critical for managing the wide range of cyber threats facing the U.S.
But it poses challenges, including determining how far the government can go in the name of national security.
Its also important for Congress and the courts to oversee this balancing act.
Tens of thousands of email users and organizations have beenaffected.
It’s free, every week, in your inbox.
The FBI is accessinghundreds of these mail serversin corporate networks.
The emphasis at the time remained on deterrence by denial, meaning making computers harder to hack.
The alternative is to go after hackers, a strategy dubbeddefend forward.
The Biden administration has continued this trend, coupled withnew sanctionson Russia in response to theSolarWinds espionage campaign.
This law, though, does not apply to the government.
It permits the FBI to access computers outside the jurisdiction of a search warrant.
Important legal issues remain unresolved with the FBIs current operation.
One is the question of liability.
Another issue is how to balance private property rights against national security needs in cases like this.
This statement may seem uncontroversial.
Much of U.S. critical infrastructure, which includes computer networks, is inprivate hands.
Yet companies have not always made the necessary investments to protect their customers.
With the FBIs actions, the Biden administration may be implicitly acknowledging such a market failure.
