INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The White House has opted to eliminate the cyber coordinator role on the National Security Council, in what some see as a step back in
strong cybersecurity policy
The duties formerly performed by the coordinator will be taken up by the other two senior directors of the NSC cyber team
Politico first reported the news.
Rob Joyce, who left the role on Friday, was chief of an NSA hacking outfit (Tailored Access Operations)
John Bolton, Trump national security advisor, ended the role with Joyce departure; a memo sent to NSC employees explained that the
elimination is to &streamline authority& in the Council
The other directors will pick up the slack.
The cyber coordinator role was first created by President Obama in 2009; its occupant in charge
of, as you might expect, coordinating national cybersecurity policy across the many places in the government where it is being
addressed.
DHS and FBI detail how Russia is hacking into U.S
nuclear facilities and other critical infrastructure
In a time when cyber policy is increasing in importance and cyber-threats are clear
and present in the country elections and other critical infrastructure, it seems a strange decision to &streamline& rather than bolster an
important cybersecurity-related office.
Trump administration has made noises about taking cybersecurity seriously, and in other areas has
taken steps to improve things — for instance, its choice in August to elevate the Military Cyber Command and give it more independence
This added roles, rather than subtracting them
But Bolton moves put more hats on fewer people, which would seem to complicate authority rather than streamline it.
It is possible that this
is all part of a larger plan that will ultimately result in better decision-making capabilities and an improved cyber policy organ, but if
so, the plan is unclear, even to those in the know.
Mr
President, if you really want to put America first, don&t cut the White House Cybersecurity Coordinator — the only person in the federal
government tasked with delivering a coordinated, whole-of-government response to the growing cyber threats facing our nation
https://t.co/MRkwA8et7y
— Mark Warner (@MarkWarner) May 15, 2018
It almost as if the federal government policies on cybersecurity aren&t
Maybe they should appoint someone to coordinate them!
