Reports have emerged that during several crisis meetings on Syria throughout the course of the conflict there, President Barack Obama’s national security team presented him with the option of using new, powerful tools which would ground the air force of Syrian president Bashar Assad and, if need be, turn his lights out: cyber weapons, never before used on the battlefield. Senior administration officials confirmed to the New York Times that the president turned down those cyberattack options against Assad, concerned the precedent their use might set a precedent for future conflicts.