National cybersecurity director resigns; cites roadblocks

[The Hope Mobile]

Source: USA Today



National cybersecurity director resigns; cites roadblocks

The sudden resignation of Rod Beckstrom, the senior Department of Homeland Security official tasked with improving U.S. civilian cybersecurity intiatives, bodes ill for transparency in government.

In this letter to DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano, Beckstrom, Director of the National Cybersecurity Center, cites funding roadblocks and smothering controls imposed by the super-secret National Security Agency.

"During my term as Director we have been unwilling to subjugate the NCSC underneath the NSA," he writes. "Instead, we advocated a model where there is a credible civilian government cybersecurity capability which interfaces with, but is not controlled by, the NSA."

Beckstrom emphasized in an interview today that he "fully supports" the NSA's intelligence-gathering role.

"It's just that as a public servant and as a citizen, I have a view that there should be a balance of power," Beckstrom says. "There should be different parties that have strength in this game. And I really feel that independence for the NCSC is important as a collaboration and bridging function."

In addition to being a terrific public speaker, Beckstrom has been a successful CEO and is co-author of a best-selling business book advocating decentralized management. He was asked by former Director of National Intelligence Mike Connell and former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chernoff to leave the private sector to create the NCSC at a time when former President Bush was being criticized for letting Homeland Security deteriorate into a rudderless agency. At one point, Beckstrom was being touted as a darkhorse candidate to be named cyber czar by President Obama.

Beckstrom took his first government job anticipating that he would be able to introduce tenets from his book -- The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations to big government.

He says he has become "hooked" on the multi-dimensional societal ill cybecrime has become, and will likely stay engaged on the issue.

By Byron Acohido

Posted at 05:32 PM/ET, March 09, 2009 in Policy, Security | Permalink


No link yet.

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Hmmmm - he was recruited by Bushies and now he's saying that he's being roadblocked??? Something's amiss here.

[monmouth]

1. I'm guessing some new rules and regs from the Obama administration

are not to his liking.. What do I know?

[peacetalksforall]

5. It sound like his objection is with hierarchial bureaucracy. I haven't read the book

either. It's true that being brought into a government job by Bush is suspect, but where the heck are we if he is a neo-con or someone who supports stealing privacy and Obama keeps him on. Tell me - is Chertoff still there? How is that working out. I'm very confused. I don't think we begin to speculate on what this is about. That means we have been distracted from paying attention to the joke division - HS. Or things are still in transition and we are about to learn.

His transparency remarks are also confusing.

Waiting to be educated. How is corporation tv spinning it?

[The Hope Mobile]

6. Sounds about right!! nt

[EVDebs]

2. He didn't have the required H1b visa I suppose. nt

[annabanana]

3. "First you gotta get their attention"

This should help focus the Administration on cyber-security issues.. And it will stir up the wiretapping issue.

[HopeHoops]

4. WHAA WHAA WHAA - they have this CONSTITUTION roadblock now - WHAAA!!!

[Thrill]

7. See ya. There will be no shortage of good people ready to tackle that position

[ddeclue]

8. Actually this guy got tired of the NSA trying to spy on everyone and is blowing the whistle on their

overbearing attempt to hijack the inter-tubes...

He's not blaming Obama, if anything he's outing Dick Cheney...

Doug D.

[The Hope Mobile]

9. that's what I was hoping for but then why was he recruited by the Bushies

in the first place? And why resign abruptly when the good guy comes in? Confusing. Do you have a source for your information?

[ddeclue]

10. Nope.. just reading what you posted...that's what it says...nt

[The Hope Mobile]

11. Your interpretation.