In an exclusive interview, FBI Director Christopher Wray expressed his dismay at the current state of law enforcement and the country’s increased vulnerability to various threats. Wray went on to say, “hard pressed to think of a time in my career where so many different kinds of threats are all elevated at once.”
While visiting the Minneapolis field office on Wednesday, Wray spoke with The Associated Press on collaborations between various organizations and law enforcement. At a time when the FBI is facing increased threats from domestic and foreign terrorists, Chinese espionage, IP theft, and foreign intervention in elections, his views are particularly pertinent.
At his office in the Brooklyn Center area, Wray expressed concern about the simultaneous elevation of numerous dangers and the broader issues faced by law enforcement. Working together is the key to overcoming these two obstacles, in my opinion. That’s the way we manage. The key is for everyone to pitch in.
Wray’s warnings about a rising threat level are in line with his assessment, which he has been sounding for months. “The likes of which we haven’t seen since ISIS launched its so-called caliphate years ago” might be a motivating factor for militants, according to Wray’s warnings issued shortly after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in Israel.
Officials disclosed in June that eight Tajikistanis with links to the Islamic State were detained for immigration violations and the FBI has been rushing to address security concerns at the southern border of the United States.
The possibility of foreign influence in the elections is another concern for officials. Officials described Iran’s actions as an aggressive and audacious attempt to meddle in American politics, and on Monday, federal agencies including the FBI said that Iran was involved for hacks that targeted the Trump campaign and attempted to breach the Biden-Harris campaign.
While Wray would not discuss specific investigations or threats, he did state that the private sector must be included in any probe of cyberattacks, whether they target election infrastructure, candidates, or campaigns.
“Partnerships are something we have been putting more emphasis on as time goes on. The ability to connect the dots is crucial, whether we’re dealing with an election influence threat or any other type of threat,” Wray stated. In order to “see the larger picture,” “you need to have partners sharing information with each other.”
According to Wray, there is a tragic rate of law enforcement officer deaths in the line of duty, with four first responders losing their lives in Minnesota in 2024 alone. This rate is approximately one death every five days. Among these, a Minneapolis police officer was murdered in May while attempting to assist a civilian, and in February, a guy armed to the teeth opened fire in Burnsville, killing two police officers and a paramedic.
The director expressed her deep sadness every time she witnessed such violence.
Such attacks have also targeted the FBI: A gunman who had previously called for the death of federal officers “on sight” on social media died in a gunfight after attempting to gain entry to the FBI’s Cincinnati office, only days after investigators searched Donald Trump’s Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago, to recover secret materials.
According to Wray, the FBI has been actively seeking to forge new collaborations with businesses and universities in addition to strengthening existing ones with state and local police departments in order to better combat cybercrime and intellectual property theft. He stated that in an effort to prevent future threats, police are working together with groups such as school resource officers and mental health specialists to assist troubled youths in Minneapolis and other areas.
To safeguard innovation and AI from external dangers, Wray emphasized the importance of working with industry.
The employment of artificial intelligence by the bad guys is something he argued was a major obstacle. To safeguard the American people against AI-enabled threats emanating from within, it is imperative that we collaborate closely with industry to ensure that American AI can be employed for this purpose.