--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the United States is promoting the…" description: "\"If the United States is promoting the development of exploits, of vulnerabilities, of insecurity in this critical infrastructure, and we're not fixing ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a5/edward-snowden-555_country_if-the-united-states-is-promoting-the-de_907659.jpg" --- # If the United States is promoting the development of… ![“If the United States is promoting the development of exploits, of vulnerabilities, of insecurity in this critical infrastructure, and we're not fixing it when we find it, instead we put it on the shelf so we can use it the next time we want to launch an attack against some foreign country. We're…” quote by Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a5/edward-snowden-555_country_if-the-united-states-is-promoting-the-de_907659.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a5/edward-snowden-555_country_if-the-united-states-is-promoting-the-de_907659.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a5/edward-snowden-555_country_if-the-united-states-is-promoting-the-de_907659.jpg) > “If the United States is promoting the development of exploits, of vulnerabilities, of insecurity in this critical infrastructure, and we're not fixing it when we find it, instead we put it on the shelf so we can use it the next time we want to launch an attack against some foreign country. We're leaving ourselves at risk.” [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Neglecting to patch known vulnerabilities creates systemic risk and invites exploitation by adversaries. **In simple terms:** Ignoring security flaws makes us vulnerable. Key Takeaway Fix vulnerabilities promptly. Themes security policy risk management Mood concerned urgent Type warning political When to use this quote - government IT - critical infrastructure - software development - incident response Key Concepts cybersecurity national defense ethical responsibility Questions to Reflect On - How can organizations prioritize patching? - What incentives can reduce delay? A Different Perspective Political pressures may delay remediation despite known risks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Foreign countries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreign-countries/) [Foreign country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreign-country/) [Infrastructure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infrastructure/) [Insecurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insecurity/) [Next time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next-time/) [Risk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/risk/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Vulnerability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vulnerability/) ## Related quotes > [We know there are a number of important initiatives to work on, but food insecurity is so critical because so many people in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-carlisle/we-know-there-are-a-number-of-important-initiatives-to-work-on-but/) [Rick Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-carlisle/) > [When people conceptualize a cyber-attack, they do tend to think about parts of the critical infrastructure like power plants, water supplies, and similar sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/when-people-conceptualize-a-cyber-attack-they-do-tend-to-think-about/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [What has a great value to us as a nation is the internet itself. The internet is critical infrastructure to the United States. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/what-has-a-great-value-to-us-as-a-nation-is-the-internet-itself-the/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [The internet is shared critical infrastructure for everyone on earth. It's not supposed to be a domain of warfare. We're not supposed to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-internet-is-shared-critical-infrastructure-for-everyone-on-earth/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [The United States is more reliant on the technical systems. We're more reliant on the critical infrastructure of the internet than any other nation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-united-states-is-more-reliant-on-the-technical-systems-we-re-more/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I am a bohemian person. 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In diplomacy, an officer sent into a foreign country as the visible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/minister-n-an-agent-of-a-higher-power-with-a-lower-responsibility-in/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [When you work as a day player on a film or a TV thing, like you're visiting a foreign country, where you know a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-heald/when-you-work-as-a-day-player-on-a-film-or-a-tv-thing-like-you-re/) [Anthony Heald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-heald/) > [Managing in a foreign country will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience that doesn't come along that often](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-mcclaren/managing-in-a-foreign-country-will-be-a-once-in-a-lifetime-experience/) [Steve McClaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-mcclaren/) > [After Cannes every year, I end up going to some foreign country I've never been to before and introducing myself to a new religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-rodriguez/after-cannes-every-year-i-end-up-going-to-some-foreign-country-i-ve/) [Michelle Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-rodriguez/) > [It is impossible to be among the woods animals on their own ground without a feeling of expanding one's own world, as when any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjorie-kinnan-rawlings/it-is-impossible-to-be-among-the-woods-animals-on-their-own-ground/) [Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjorie-kinnan-rawlings/) > [And, the sets that they built are just so beautiful. It's like going to a completely foreign country and experiencing a new culture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamsin-egerton/and-the-sets-that-they-built-are-just-so-beautiful-it-s-like-going-to/) [Tamsin Egerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamsin-egerton/) > [It is always a taut moment in a foreign country waiting to see if your English-speaking guide speaks English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peg-bracken/it-is-always-a-taut-moment-in-a-foreign-country-waiting-to-see-if/) [Peg Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peg-bracken/) > [You deny that man is really so prejudiced as I suppose him; talk to him then of some foreign country, ask him what religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulke-greville-1st-baron-brooke/you-deny-that-man-is-really-so-prejudiced-as-i-suppose-him-talk-to/) [Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulke-greville-1st-baron-brooke/) > [The church must never become a government factory, carrying on a nationalized industry of religion with the people as the bolts and nuts; with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-archer/the-church-must-never-become-a-government-factory-carrying-on-a/) Glenn Archer ## More by Edward Snowden > [It is afraid of an informed, angry public demanding the constitutional government it was promised - and it should be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/it-is-afraid-of-an-informed-angry-public-demanding-the-constitutional/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Much of what I saw in Geneva really disillusioned me about how my government functions and what its impact is in the world. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/much-of-what-i-saw-in-geneva-really-disillusioned-me-about-how-my/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [The NSA and Israel wrote Stuxnet together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/the-nsa-and-israel-wrote-stuxnet-together/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [As a general rule, so long as you have any choice at all, you should never route through or peer with the UK under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/as-a-general-rule-so-long-as-you-have-any-choice-at-all-you-should/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [ \[Brazil\] went to the UN and said, "We need new standards for this." We need to take a look at what they're calling "data… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/brazil-went-to-the-un-and-said-we-need-new-standards-for-this-we-need/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [You are also asked to take an oath, and that's the oath of service. The oath of service is not to secrecy, but to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/you-are-also-asked-to-take-an-oath-and-that-s-the-oath-of-service-the/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [We need to think about encryption not as this sort of arcane, black art. It's a basic protection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/we-need-to-think-about-encryption-not-as-this-sort-of-arcane-black/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [A lot of people in 2008 voted for Obama. I did not vote for him. I voted for a third party. But I believed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/a-lot-of-people-in-2008-voted-for-obama-i-did-not-vote-for-him-i/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Too often we forget that social and political movements don't happen overnight. They don't bring change immediately - you have to build a critical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/too-often-we-forget-that-social-and-political-movements-don-t-happen/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [ There was a real choice when \[Barack Obama\] became president. It was a very difficult choice - to say, "We're not going to hold… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/there-was-a-real-choice-when-barack-obama-became-president-it-was-a/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [We've learned that we've allowed technological capabilities to dictate policies and practices, rather than ensuring that our laws and values guide our technological capabilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/we-ve-learned-that-we-ve-allowed-technological-capabilities-to/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [It's much easier, I think, to protect communications while they're in transit at least, than it is to enforce legislation in every country in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/it-s-much-easier-i-think-to-protect-communications-while-they-re-in/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [If an adversary didn't target our power plants but they did target the core routers, the backbones that tie our internet connections together, entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-an-adversary-didn-t-target-our-power-plants-but-they-did-target/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I care more about the country than what happens to me. But we can't allow the law to become a political weapon or agree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/i-care-more-about-the-country-than-what-happens-to-me-but-we-can-t/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) [Explore all 478 Edward Snowden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) ## More Attack quotes > [British Forces should be in a position to give back in a ten fold measure any attack that the Germans may attempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-banting/british-forces-should-be-in-a-position-to-give-back-in-a-ten-fold/) [Frederick Banting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-banting/) > [“THE UNFORGIVEN Tell me if you've ever had to deal with these kinds of people: The kind who take and don't give. The kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/the-unforgiven-tell-me-if-you-ve-ever-had-to-deal-with-these-kinds-of/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [When I hit bottom, I can attack the problem and get to where I want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-rodman/when-i-hit-bottom-i-can-attack-the-problem-and-get-to-where-i-want-to/) [Dennis Rodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-rodman/) > [It was both necessary and desirable for us to be so strong at sea that no Sea Power could attack us without risk, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/it-was-both-necessary-and-desirable-for-us-to-be-so-strong-at-sea/) [Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/) > [The best way to counter-attack a hater is to make it blatantly obvious that their attack has had no impact on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-ferriss/the-best-way-to-counter-attack-a-hater-is-to-make-it-blatantly/) [Tim Ferriss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-ferriss/) > [President Obama has never summarized the Obama Doctrine with such clarity, but here is what it would look like: 'I will undertake any military…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/president-obama-has-never-summarized-the-obama-doctrine-with-such/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [Everything has got a place in my house. If something is moved I get a panic attack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rylan-clark-neal/everything-has-got-a-place-in-my-house-if-something-is-moved-i-get-a/) [Rylan Clark-Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rylan-clark-neal/) > [I mean, it's not just the rappers, you know what i'm saying? People want to attack anybody that's a large figure, you know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-notorious-b-i-g/i-mean-it-s-not-just-the-rappers-you-know-what-i-m-saying-people-want/) [The Notorious B.I.G](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-notorious-b-i-g/) > [Sometimes when you take a tough action against one side in the conflict, they see you as part of the conflict and they attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/sometimes-when-you-take-a-tough-action-against-one-side-in-the/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [“Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/hence-when-able-to-attack-we-must-seem-unable-when-using-our-forces/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [Free speech has a very small constituency on the modern campus, particularly if the speaker under attack is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leo/free-speech-has-a-very-small-constituency-on-the-modern-campus/) [John Leo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leo/) > [Daniil is a player who will not give you many chances to attack. If I have enough power and choose the right moment, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrey-rublev/daniil-is-a-player-who-will-not-give-you-many-chances-to-attack-if-i/) [Andrey Rublev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrey-rublev/) > [Distributed ledgers are inherently harder to attack because instead of a single database, there are multiple shared copies of the same database, so a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-walport/distributed-ledgers-are-inherently-harder-to-attack-because-instead/) [Mark Walport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-walport/) > [Attack life. It's going to kill you anyways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/attack-life-it-s-going-to-kill-you-anyways/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For those of us in the political business, generally, it's been pretty much an unwritten but understood rule that family and children are out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-nutter/for-those-of-us-in-the-political-business-generally-it-s-been-pretty/) [Michael Nutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-nutter/) Browse all 1,074 Attack quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If the United States is promoting the development of exploits, of vulnerabilities, of insecurity in this critical infrastructure, and we're not fixing it when we find it, instead we put it on the shelf so we can use it the next time we want to launch an attack against some foreign country. 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