Brody to lead Energy cybersecurity

Bruce Brody, the cybersecurity chief at the Department of Veterans Affairs, is moving to the Energy Department to help that agency toughen its security against viruses and hacker attacks.

Brody is expected to start his new job as associate chief information officer for cybersecurity in mid-July. He is widely credited with helping the VA move from having a poorly secured cyber environment to having one of the best security plans in government, according to Robert McFarland, the VA's CIO.

"Although we have a long way to go, Bruce has helped us develop a solid plan that will ultimately allow us to secure the VA and better serve our veterans," McFarland said in an internal staff memo June 16.

Pedro Cadenas Jr. will become VA's acting cyber- and information security chief, according to McFarland.

In an interview, Brody said that the VA was once plagued with viruses. But after three years on the job, "it now has the largest and most effective antivirus implementation in government," he said.

When he started the job, Brody said, the VA's cybersecurity boundaries were soft and unevenly protected. The department, which is the largest civilian agency in the federal government, now has a central incidence response capability and a massive intrusion-detection program.

Brody, who has spent most of his career at the Defense Department, said he will become the only cybersecurity chief to have experiences in two Cabinet-level departments. He said he is looking forward to his new job because of its national security challenges. Energy has significant classified systems because it oversees nuclear facilities nationwide.