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As state-sponsored cyberattacks reach record highs worldwide, Donald Trump is actively dismantling the agencies and leadership responsible for defending America’s digital infrastructure — while simultaneously pardoning cybercriminals and sidelining critical intelligence.

Since April, Trump has fired top cybersecurity leaders including four-star Gen. Timothy Haugh, head of the NSA and US Cyber Command, his deputy, and nearly a dozen senior cyberdiplomats from the State Department’s Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy. These dismissals have created a dangerous leadership vacuum at a time when global cyberthreats are intensifying.

Now, new government disclosures, along with media reporting, reveal the alarming fallout from these cyberleadership purges and organizational cutbacks.

This month, the China-backed groups Linen Typhoon, Violet Typhoon, and Storm-2603 infiltrated a US nuclear weapons agency through their coordinated cyberespionage campaign against Microsoft SharePoint servers; over 50 organizations worldwide have already been compromised.

Hackers have breached 400 agencies, businesses, and other groups, the Dutch cybersecurity company Eye Security claimed, adding: “We expect it may continue to rise as investigations progress.”

Additionally, a leaked NBC News memo confirmed that Salt Typhoon, another Chinese state-sponsored hacking group, infiltrated the US National Guard network in at least one state from March to December 2024. The memo warns the hackers likely gained access to sensitive data that could help Beijing breach other National Guard units and their cybersecurity partners nationwide.

At the same time, a critical vulnerability in US freight rail systems has resurfaced. Researchers discovered that hackers could remotely trigger train braking systems by exploiting a decades-old flaw in the communication between head-of-train (HOT) and end-of-train (EOT) devices. Though the flaw was first reported in 2005, it was never seriously addressed. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has now issued an advisory warning of potential disruptions and even derailments.

All these security failures stem directly from Trump’s deliberate preference for blind loyalty over qualified expertise, hollowing out the very institutions responsible for defending the nation. 

In one of his most absurd acts of criminal advocacy, Trump pardoned Ross Ulbricht, founder of the Silk Road darknet marketplace, a figure convicted for facilitating massive drug trafficking and murders-for-hire. Critics say the pardon sends a clear message: Cybercriminals and online traffickers have little to fear from Trump and his administration.

Meanwhile, critical cyberprograms have been dismantled, cybersecurity legislation blocked, and federal funding slashed. This puts the burden on states that lack both  funding and expertise. 

Intelligence warnings about escalating Chinese and Russian cyberattacks on military systems, power grids, and communications infrastructure have been minimized, ignored or even buried by the Trump administration, evidenced by their actions and policy decisions.

The effects are cascading across the public and private sectors. Undersea internet cables, vital to global connectivity, have been sabotaged. Cyberattacks on US networks have doubled in frequency, and America’s closest allies, including the UK, are being targeted as the US reduces international cyber counterespionage cooperation. Private security firms have reported that even basic vulnerabilities, such as a zero-click exploit in Signal that can reveal a user’s location, are going unaddressed.

As one senator put it: Trump has “illegally gutted funding for cybersecurity.”

The picture is stark. Trump’s systematic gutting of cybersecurity leadership, his tolerance for online criminality, and his disregard for mounting threats appear to be part of a calculated strategy to weaken the institutions that check his power. 

The US is now more exposed to cybersabotage, espionage, and infrastructure collapse than at any point in the last two decades. In an era dominated by cyberwarfare, Trump’s actions are not merely irresponsible; they are a direct threat to national security and put all Americans, Republican and Democrat, in peril. 

10 Major Cyberattacks and Data Breaches in 2025 (So Far)

The author writes, “In 2025, companies and government agencies have been targeted by a seemingly nonstop series of cyberattacks — including both disruptive ransomware attacks and incidents focused on data theft and extortion. As of this writing, one major attack is still ongoing, with threat actors exploiting vulnerabilities in on-premises Microsoft SharePoint servers in widespread cyberattacks.”

Navigating Cyber Threats Facing Global Maritime Operations

From Crisis24: “The maritime industry has seen remarkable progress towards digitalization and modernization over the past decade. But along with the benefits, the increased digital connectivity has brought a new set of cyber risks that span across both digital and physical domains.”

Risk of Undersea Cable Attacks Backed by Russia and China Likely To Rise, Report Warns

The author writes, “The risk of Russia- and China-backed attacks on undersea cables carrying international internet traffic is likely to rise amid a spate of incidents in the Baltic Sea and around Taiwan, according to a report. Submarine cables account for 99% of the world’s intercontinental data traffic and have been affected by incidents with suspected state support over the past 18 months. Analysis by Recorded Future, a US cybersecurity company, singled out nine incidents in the Baltic Sea and off the coast of Taiwan in 2024 and 2025 as a harbinger for further disruptive activity.”

Looks Like the Taiwanese Chip Industry Is Becoming a Hot Target for Chinese State-Sponsored Hackers Trying To Nab Trade Secrets

From PC Gamer: “Nothing brings to light the spookily anarchic nature of the international order more than cyber warfare. It’s happening all the time, in that ethereal realm of bits and bytes — poking, prodding, testing. We might picture this as state agencies tampering with other state agencies, but the reality is often far from it, as demonstrated by a recent report from cybersecurity company Proofpoint’s Threat Research team (via Mynavi). This research shows how Chinese state-sponsored cyber attackers have been targeting the Taiwanese semiconductor industry.”

China’s Cyber Sector Amplifies Beijing’s Hacking of US Targets

The author writes, “Undeterred by recent indictments alleging widespread cyberespionage against American agencies, journalists and infrastructure targets, Chinese hackers are hitting a wider range of targets and battling harder to stay inside once detected, seven current and former U.S. officials said in interviews.”