On November 9th, 2011, Politico ran an Op-Ed from Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Secretary Napolitano wrote on the US' general progress on cybersecurity, noting the importance of safeguarding cybernetworks. To improve that security, the Secretary argued for a greater public-private partnership to secure the nation's cyberinfrastructure, which is predominately in private hands. Secretary Napolitano also noted how DHS has worked with operators of power grids and manufacturing systems to protect their industrial control systems (the machinery that physically controls the critical infrastructure, but also the machinery that can be hacked and ultimately cause mayhem). The DHS' U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team has already responded to more than 100,000 incident reports and released more than 5,000 actionable cybersecurity alerts. Furthermore, DHS has kept a close eye on Duqu, analyzing its targets and working to understand its capabilities.
Secretary Napolitano also noted other DHS efforts to improve cybersecurity: the creation of a national hub for cyber response efforts, developing and deploying more secure Internet protocols, and promoting cybersecurity education through competitive scholarships. These efforts are important, but Secretary Napolitano believes that more is needed. To this end, the Secretary renewed her call for comprehensive cybersecurity legislation and argued for the passage of a proposal that would include consumer notification, new tools to secure cyberinfrastructure, and a codification of DHS responsibility to address gaps in the US patchwork of cyberauthorities. This proposal would also remove barriers to information sharing and enhance collaboration with the private sector.
The Secretary concluded by saying "The need for collective action on cybersecurity has never been greater . . . With each day that passes, the urgency for legislation only grows. We must seize this moment to act."
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