Hathaway confirms she's a candidate for cyber chief

Melissa Hathaway, the official that led the Obama administration’s 60-day review of cybersecurity policy, confirmed Friday that she is a candidate for the White House cybersecurity coordinator position.

Hathaway said there is a list of candidates -- she wasn't sure how long -- being considered for the position, but that  President Barack Obama hadn’t yet conducted any interviews. Obama, in a May 29 speech on cybersecurity policy, said he would “personally select” the cybersecurity coordinator. She said officials hoped to have a cybersecurity coordinator selected in the coming weeks, but that no definite date had been set.  

Hathaway, who has been serving as the acting senior director for cyberspace on the White House's National Security Council, said that she is interested in the job.

A reader responds:

I am astonished that Ms. Hathaway would even want the job she formulates in her Cyber Policy Review (CPR), the 76 page document she prepared over 60 days. The position, as described, is powerless to effect change and would be frustrating to the point of hair pulling for anyone who took it.

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She made the comments while speaking with reporters after an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in which she detailed the findings of the administration’s review and highlighted areas of future focus.

She also said the administration was reviewing the many cybersecurity-related bills that lawmakers have introduced in recent months and working to put together a comprehensive view of the legislation for Congress.

During her speech she said the administration will make cybersecurity a core management responsibility – on a par with human capital and fiscal management – for heads of executive agencies and departments. 

Throughout the speech Hathaway emphasized the importance of privacy and civil liberties concerns as the administration’s cybersecurity efforts move forward, saying the goal is to have an official on the national security staff with that responsibility hired in the next few weeks.