President Barack Obama still hasn't
selected a new cyber security coordinator yet, but his final decision
is expected in the next week or so.
The most
likely candidate to fill the cyber security czar position is
Frank Kramer, who served as assistant Defense secretary during former
President Bill Clinton's presidency. Each possible candidate
was interviewed by U.S. chief technology officer Aneesh Chopra, who
also confirmed someone would be chosen soon.
Obama ordered a
60-day cyber review, which was led by Melissa Hathaway, though
Hathaway pulled her name out of the hat due to disappointment in the
length of time it has taken Obama to select a candidate.
The
nation faces continued cyber pressure from China, North Korea,
Eastern Europe, and random attacks by rogue hackers.
Specifically, security experts are most concerned about China, which
reportedly has led coordinated cyber attacks against the U.S.
infrastructure.
In addition to temporarily shutting down
servers, lax U.S. cyber security also led to identity theft,
intellectual property theft, and similar attacks that has led to
software, classified information, and money being stolen from U.S.
companies and institutions.
The U.S. government is interested
in better researching cyber security, especially since security
experts point out the government cannot properly respond to cyber
attacks. An official government position dedicated to cyber
security will hopefully be able to fill in security holes, while also
preparing the U.S. to launch cyber attacks against foreign targets.
