Muddling Responsibilities? Senate Committee Announces Cybersecurity Task Force
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence announced yesterday the formation of a bipartisan task force for cybersecurity. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse will serve as the chair and Sens. Olympia Snowe and Barbara Mikulski will serve as members of the task force.
The task force will evaluate the current cybersecurity threats facing the United States and will make recommendations as needed to the Intelligence Community. The task force’s work will be completed by summer 2010.
In recent weeks, several former government cybersecurity professionals have raised the issue of overlapping responsibilities, particularly with Congress. Multiple committees each claim some level of oversight for cybersecurity, yet they do not present a unified voice on what needs to be done or what agency should have the lead role.
Last month, Jim Lewis of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said before the United States can achieve international cooperation on cybersecurity, it needs to establish precisely what its goals and needs are. Until the nation is able to present a common voice on this issue, hopes of international cooperation are minimal.