Category Archives: Ron Johnson

DHS’s top cyber office is about to get a name that reflects its mission

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The point office on cybersecurity in the Department of Homeland Security is on track for a rebrand. The Senate on Wednesday passed the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Act, which would both codify the office into law and give it a more relevant name. Under the bill, DHS’s National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) would become the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). DHS established the NPPD in 2007; the legislation is essentially Congress’ official seal of approval. The House is expected to hold a final vote soon, sending the bill to President Donald Trump. NPPD leads the U.S. government’s efforts to secure federal networks and critical infrastructure. The office has also been spearheading the federal government’s election security efforts since the threats that became apparent in 2016. The office coordinates with state and local election offices on information sharing and cybersecurity best practices. “It is ridiculous that DHS needs an act of […]

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Senate panel gives go-ahead to bill that would hit reset on DHS

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Congress is moving forward with a plan to reauthorize the Department of Homeland Security for the first time since its 2002 creation and establish a permanent, dedicated cyber office within the agency. The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs approved the legislation Wednesday. The current bill is a version of what the House passed in July. If it passes in the full Senate, it would still need to see action in the House, even though that side of Congress already passed two attempts to reauthorize DHS last year. The Senate bill would reorganize DHS’s National Protection and Programs Directorate into a dedicated cyber agency, called the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. NPPD was established in 2007 by DHS and therefore isn’t officially deputized by Congress. The new office would be headed by an department undersecretary. “Passing the Department of Homeland Security Authorization Act is an important step to strengthen DHS and to establish a process […]

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Cyber experts tell Congress that if companies can’t hack back, maybe the feds should

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Corporate cybersecurity experts told senators that the U.S. government should launch offensive cyber-missions against hackers who attack and steal information from American companies. During a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing Wednesday, Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis., asked a panel of prominent private sector cybersecurity executives how the U.S. government could better collaborate with American companies to combat malicious digital activity. The four-person panel, which consisted of individuals that work for Symantec, Monsanto, the Marine Corps University and a prominent U.S. law firm, unanimously agreed and told lawmakers that the U.S. government must do more to curb malicious cyber-activity. The follow-up question, however, of how exactly the country should advance such a broad effort, was met with widely different answers. “I would say where the government can help corporate America most is to do the thing corporate America cannot do for itself,” said Kevin Keeney, director of cyber incident response for the […]

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Senators draft bill to turn government’s vulnerabilities equities process into law

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There’s a bill in the works that would codify the U.S. government’s vulnerabilities equities process into law, CyberScoop has learned. The legislation intends to add clarity, transparency and a level of consistency to the VEP, a secretive framework which guides when and if a federal agency will notify a technology firm of an unknown, exploitable software flaw discovered by the U.S. government. The bill is being sponsored by Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis. Spokespeople for both senators confirmed the existence of the bill, but would not provide additional details. The VEP has come under fire in recent years due, at least in part, to the exposure of classified material concerning government hacking operations. Exasperating this situation is the fact that the private sector remains largely in the dark with regard to the VEP’s disclosure criteria and the identify of individuals who sit on its multi-agency review […]

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