
Episode #210
#210 - Cyber Letters of Marque
Cybercrime costs Americans an estimated $200 billion a year, and AI is supercharging it. The U.S. government's newest response is one of the oldest tools in the Constitution, one Congress hasn't used since the War of 1812. This episode covers letters of marque and privateers: their role in the American Revolution, how prize courts and bonds kept privateers from becoming pirates, and the White House memo that trends toward implementing a modern version for cyberspace. Sponsors: This episode is presented by Altitude, visit altitude.xyz/law to learn more about their global payments platform. Sponsors also include: The law firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel. Cahill is hosting Confluence 2026, its flagship emerging tech conference, in New York City on September 24, 2026. You can apply to attend here: https://www.cahill.com/confluence2026. Thank you as well to the Solana Policy Institute and the Hyperliquid Policy Center for supporting the podcast. Guests: Chris Perkins (President of Franklin Crypto at Franklin Templeton, Naval Academy graduate and Marine Corps veteran) Ari Redbord (Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs and former federal prosecutor) Michael Coates (CISO of the Solana Foundation and previously Twitter's first CISO) Camelia Lopez Shoemaker (Holland & Knight, former DOJ) Nelson Rosario (Rosario Tech Law) Timestamps: (0:00) The $200 billion problem (2:16) The Model T and the FBI (4:18) Pig butchering (7:03) History (7:50) The high seas and the internet (8:30) Marque vs. reprisal (11:35) American Revolution (14:08) Building a (private) navy (17:25) The Constitution (18:40) The Paris Declaration (20:34) Pirates or privateers? (22:12) The five-part system (22:40) Why government can't scale (23:30) The Fourth Amendment (25:26) Suspicious Activity Reports (28:23) Recent memorandum (30:40) The bond (32:34) The blockchain (33:49) Latest from U.S. gov't (34:56) The attribution problem (36:30) Who's involved today? (37:49) The Beacon Network (39:16) Pre-clearance and due process (41:10) Reporting cybercrime (44:26) International law This should be the internet's best explainer on letters of marque. You don't need to be a lawyer, historian or security expert to follow along. Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal or investment advice. Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of their employers. Listening to this podcast does not create an attorney-client relationship.

