New Approaches Needed to Combat Cyber Threats, says DHS’ Napolitano

Better education and new approaches to policy-making are a few of the ways the U.S. can better protect itself from cyber threats, according to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.

The Secretary, speaking at a conference last week sponsored by Atlantic Media, listed numerous DHS initiatives to secure the country’s cyber infrastructure. But she said some new strategies may be needed due to the complexity and severity of cyber threats.

“We need colleges and universities to make cyber security a multidisciplinary pursuit so that we have policy makers who understand technology, but we also have technologists who understand policy-making,” she said. “We need, I believe, a more transparent and inclusive cyber security policy-making process that brings the best minds to the table and the best minds from a number of different areas, instead of the existing divide.”

Cyber attacks are a threat partly because the Internet and related technology is playing an increasingly prevalent role in Americans’ lives, she said. A disruptive attack “could have cascading effects, not only within the cyber domain, but across multiple other sectors and elements of our critical infrastructure, crippling commerce.”

Major DHS efforts to secure cyberspace include inter-governmental and public-private partnerships, a drive to hire more cyber security professionals, and ongoing cyber security awareness campaigns.

The challenge of cyber threats is unique in some ways, she said. “This one may be bigger, more complex, and require more of our effort than anything we've ever dealt with,” she said. The country has faced similar challenges before, she added, and has “always met [them]” by “putting our best minds together.”