[IP] New cybersecurity chief picked
New cybersecurity chief picked
White House selects Symantec executive for post
WASHINGTON (AP) --The Bush administration on Monday selected Amit Yoran, a
respected software executive from Symantec Corp., as the nation's new
cybersecurity chief inside the Department of Homeland Security.
Yoran, who is hardly a household name but well known within the
cybersecurity community, will be the government's evangelist for convincing
Americans to improve their computer defenses against hackers, disgruntled
employees, commercial rivals and foreign governments.
Yoran, a Symantec vice president, also will be responsible for carrying out
dozens of recommendations in the administration's "National Strategy to
Secure Cyberspace," a set of proposals to better protect computer networks.
"There are a number of challenges, but I wouldn't point to any one in
particular and say it's the most difficult to overcome," Yoran said.
"There's definitely a lot of work ahead of us."
Protected government computers
The Department of Homeland Security announced Yoran's selection Monday to
industry executives and other government officials. Yoran, who was not at
the announcement, said he expects to report for work within a few weeks.
Yoran cofounded Riptech Inc. of Alexandria, Virginia, in March 1998, which
monitored government and corporate computers around the world with an
elaborate sensor network to protect them against attacks. He sold the firm
in July 2002 to Symantec for $145 million and stayed on as vice president
for managed security services.
Yoran said he hasn't yet talked with government ethics lawyers, but he said
Symantec, a leading cybersecurity and antivirus vendor, wouldn't be shown
any special treatment by the department.
Position drew criticism
The new cybersecurity chief's position drew early criticism over its
placement deep inside the agency's organizational chart. The cyberchief
will be at least three steps beneath Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.
Yoran effectively replaces a position once held by Richard Clarke, a
special adviser to President George W. Bush.
Yoran earned a bachelor's degree in computer science from West Point and a
master's in computer security from George Washington University. He was
director of the vulnerability assessment program for the Defense
Department's computer emergency response team before starting Riptech.
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