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Experts: Next President Must Make Cybersecurity a Priority

So far, cybersecurity hasn't been on the candidates' election radar

By Jaikumar Vijayan, Computerworld

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In addition, a commission established last November by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) suggests that the White House take more responsibility for leading national cybersecurity efforts. The commission, of which Yoran is a member, is working on a set of cybersecurity recommendations for the 44th U.S. presidency.

One of the most significant is that the next administration should consider taking a direct role in coordinating cyberdefenses because the DHS has so far failed in that role. The commission said it is arguing for a more direct White House role because it believes that only the president's office has the authority and the oversight needed to pull the effort together.

Meanwhile, both presidential candidates themselves have said they would make information security a top priority.

In a position paper released in July, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) noted that as president, he would declare cyberinfrastructure a strategic asset "vital to national security and the global economy." The paper noted that an Obama administration would strengthen federal oversight on cyberissues and create a national cyberadvisor reporting directly to the president. In addition, Obama would push for more research and development for secure systems and networking technologies capable of withstanding cyberattacks.

In a similar position paper expressing his views on various homeland security challenges, Sen. John McCain's (R-Ariz.) campaign noted that a McCain administration would give cybersecurity "priority attention." It noted that the candidate would offer "full support" for the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (U.S.-CERT) and the National Cyber Response Coordination Group for coordinating all defenses against and responses to a cyberattack.