Network Security News

Cyber czar not needed, Republican Collins says

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

The top Republican on the Senate homeland security committee is opposed to the appointment of a cyber coordinator or "cyber czar" in the White House, saying cybersecurity should be rooted in the Department of Homeland Security.

Maine Senator Susan Collins said Monday at a cybersecurity forum in Washington, D.C. that the nation's computer network security would be better protected from cyber attacks through coordinated efforts within DHS, not the White House.

"Effectively managing government cybersecurity is going to require more than a few staff crammed into a cubicle in the depths of the White House," Collins said, according to Govinfosecurity.com.

Meanwhile, Senator Joseph Lieberman, who chairs the Senate homeland security committee, is introducing legislation to create a cyber czar position at the White House, an official who would be confirmed by the Senate.

DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano on Friday unveiled the department's newest cybersecurity center in Arlington, Virginia.

The National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center is a "coordinated watch and warning center that will improve national efforts to address threats and incidents affecting the nation's critical information technology and cyber infrastructure," Napolitano said.