What’s Deal with Federal Cyber Security? Are We Going to Have a Cyber Security Czar?

Several months back the topic of Federal Cyber Security was one of the hottest news stories around. President Obama completed his 60-day Cyber Review – and it seemed like the country was heading in the right direction when it came to protecting our computer networks and online assets. Then in August, the acting cyber-security czar, Melissa Hathaway, resigned, and the healthcare reform craziness took over. So, what is the deal? Are we not going to have a cyber security czar? Don’t you think we need one?

Of course, we need a cyber security czar. How quickly we forget the news of our air traffic systems being compromised, the Pentagon experiencing 360 million attempts to breach its networks– the list goes on and on. So, what’s going on?

According to Jon Oltsik is a senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group, the president is likely to find and appoint a qualified person – probably sooner, rather than later. When person finally arrives, there will be little time for on-the-job training. Unlike politics, cyber criminals aren’t waiting for the next election before they take action.

Perhaps this could have been mitigated if the administration appointed a person to this position back in May? We welcome all thoughts, comments and feedback.