Schumer urges faster DHS response as AI-driven hacking threats grow
WASHINGTON, DC: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is ramping up pressure on the Trump administration over what he says is a dangerous cybersecurity gap facing America’s cities, counties, and state agencies.
In a letter sent Thursday, May 7 to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Schumer argued that local governments are increasingly exposed to cyberattacks as artificial intelligence rapidly transforms how hackers identify and exploit digital vulnerabilities.
Schumer warns against AI-driven attacks
Schumer’s warning centers on a growing fear in Washington that powerful AI systems are beginning to change the cyber battlefield faster than government agencies can adapt.
In his message to the Department of Homeland Security, the New York Democrat said state and municipal systems including hospitals, public utilities, emergency communications networks, and transportation infrastructure could become easy targets if Washington does not accelerate its defensive planning.
“As AI continues its rapid development including important cybersecurity advances as well as dangerous new hacking tools, it is imperative that all levels of our government have access to this technology so they can prepare before it’s too late.” Schumer said.
“If our local governments are left behind, the consequences could be severe.”
He urged DHS to outline how it plans to work directly with state, local, tribal, and territorial governments to identify weak points in public infrastructure, share cyber intelligence faster and deploy defensive tools before adversaries exploit them.
The senator also questioned whether the federal government currently has a functioning strategy to ensure local agencies can keep pace with increasingly automated cyber threats.
AI breakthroughs raise alarm
The letter comes at a time when lawmakers and national security officials are closely watching the rapid emergence of advanced AI models capable of identifying security flaws that have remained buried in software for years.
Schumer pointed to recent industry developments that have demonstrated how frontier AI systems can scan code, uncover hidden weaknesses, and potentially accelerate both cyber defense and cyber offense.
While major tech companies are pitching AI as a security breakthrough, intelligence officials have quietly warned that the same technology could be weaponized by hostile actors.
The senator also raised fresh concerns about internal instability at Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the cyber arm of DHS.
He noted that the agency has been operating without Senate-confirmed leadership during a period of rapidly escalating digital threats.
Schumer further criticized the department’s decision to restructure support for the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center, a key cyber resource used by local governments across the country.
