About the IAPP

Matthew F. Ferraro is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Privacy and Cybersecurity Group, where he helps clients address complex regulatory matters at the intersection of advanced technology, national security, and crisis management. He advises leading organizations on high-impact matters related to artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies, cyberattacks, domestic and international privacy compliance, internal investigations, foreign direct investment reviews, and high-stakes crises.

Before joining the firm, Matthew served as the Senior Counselor for Cybersecurity and Emerging Technology to the Secretary of Homeland Security. As a principal advisor to the Secretary and a member of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s leadership team, he served at the heart of U.S. government policymaking around AI and cybersecurity. He assisted in the development and drafting of key AI, cyber, and technology policies and regulations; advised on the deployment of AI to fulfill the department’s missions; and counseled on cyber-incident responses and investigations. Matthew also helped establish and served as the Executive Director of the Artificial Intelligence Safety and Security Board, a flagship public-private advisory committee focused on AI’s use in critical infrastructure and chaired by the Secretary and composed of industry, nonprofit, and government luminaries.

Matthew leverages his prior experience at DHS, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Central Intelligence Agency to assist companies, government contractors, boards of directors, and investors in responding to a range of pressing technological, national security, and cyber challenges. He focuses his practice on counseling companies on their most difficult issues, including:

Advising on the evolving kaleidoscope of domestic and international regulations on AI, data privacy, and emerging technologies;Providing strategic and product counseling on new technologies and applications;Counseling on internal AI governance policies and practices;Defending clients in regulatory inquiries, enforcement actions, and litigation related to advanced technologies, cyber incidents, and national-security issues;Preparing for and responding to cyberattacks;Conducting internal investigations;Guiding clients during crises, including in matters involving the U.S. Congress;Advising on geopolitical and national-security risks, including helping clients navigate complex transactions before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS);Conducting investment and deal diligence related to data, AI, and technology; andCounseling on the legal and business challenges of synthetic media, or deepfakes, and viral narratives, a field that Matthew pioneered and in which he is one of the nation’s foremost authorities.

A prolific media commentator, public speaker, and author, Matthew has written or co-written scores of articles and book chapters on law, national security, and technology. His articles on these topics have appeared in The Washington Post, CNN, Lawfare, Corporate Counsel, The Hill, Tech Policy Press, Brunswick Review, and Studies in Intelligence, the CIA’s journal, among others. Matthew’s analysis of pressing technology and law issues has appeared in major media outlets, including Axios, BBC Radio, Bloomberg, CNBC, CNN, The Financial Times, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, and others. He is a sought-after speaker at events both domestically and abroad and has spoken at such forums as South by Southwest, the IAPP, the National Judicial College, the Global Government Forum, the American Bar Association, and many others.

A life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Matthew also serves as an adjunct professor of law at George Mason University, where he teaches on the emerging law of AI, and as a senior fellow of the National Security Institute.