Cyber control: White House or DHS?

There is an ongoing and heated debate over who should be in charge of federal cybersecurity policy, a yet-to-be-named czar in the White House or the Department of Homeland Security that now has jurisdiction over many of the important civilian and private sector functions.

Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the ranking Republican on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, is preparing cybersecurity legislation that would give DHS the primary authority to protect federal civilian and private computer networks from attacks. "We need more rigorous and aggressive cybersecurity standards, both for the federal government and in helping the private sector improve cybersecurity practices," Collins told nextgov.com. "I also think we need to clarify who is in charge of cybersecurity across the federal government and make sure that the officials and agencies involved have the authority that they need."

Her measure will add to a number of pending bills, some of which give the authority to the White House. One key bill is a measure by Senate Commerce Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) that would create a White House office and national cybersecurity adviser to lead efforts.

The political debate may continue for some time, although Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada has said he would like to see the parties work out their differences and come up with a compromised bill that could be brought to the Senate floor before the end of the year.
 
DHS has been heavily criticized as ineffective and incapable of handling the cybersecurity job, but the Obama administration has a new team in place and is moving ahead on a number of fronts using its current authority.
 
For more on the cyber debate:
- see this nextgov.com article