U.S. Space Force Major advocates for Bitcoin in national defense
U.S. Space Force Major Jason Lowery has presented a fresh perspective on Bitcoin, emphasizing its potential impact in areas beyond financial applications, notably in national defense and cybersecurity.
Lowery, in a detailed letter to the U.S. Defense Innovation Board on Dec. 2, highlighted the potential strategic importance of Bitcoin beyond its common perception as a monetary system.
Lowery argues that Bitcoin’s capability extends to securing various forms of data, messages, and command signals. This aspect, often overlooked, could significantly contribute to the country’s cybersecurity infrastructure.
He emphasized the need for the Defense Innovation Board to recommend that the Secretary of Defense investigate Proof-of-Work, or PoW, systems like Bitcoin for their national strategic importance.
The letter elaborates on how a PoW system, exemplified by Bitcoin, could act as a deterrent against cyberattacks. Lowery likens the steep costs associated with operating resource-intensive computer systems required for PoW to the deterrence provided by military assets against physical attacks.
He believes that this approach, applied in the digital domain, mirrors physical security strategies in traditional domains like land, sea, air and space.
Lowery also underscores the potential of Bitcoin in the realm of cybersecurity. He envisions it playing a pivotal role in maintaining the United States’ position as a global superpower, especially in a world increasingly vulnerable to digital threats.
He goes as far as to suggest that embracing Bitcoin’s cybersecurity applications could mark the beginning of a cybersecurity revolution, converting the global electric power grid into a macrochip to constrain malicious actors and protect internet data.
The proposal also hints at the possibility that the U.S. Department of Defense may have already missed valuable time in not integrating Bitcoin into its cybersecurity arsenal.
Lowery, who is also a national defense fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), had earlier proposed a Bitcoin-based cybersecurity tool in March, which he believes could transform national security.
In a related development, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong discussed the role of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in maintaining the U.S. dollar’s dominance.
Armstrong suggested that a transition from dollars to cryptocurrencies would be more advantageous than moving to another country’s fiat currency should the U.S. dollar lose its predominant status.
