Organizing cybersecurity efforts remains key challenge

With the United States facing threats of cyberattacks from foreign countries, criminal organizations and politically motivated hackers, questions linger about the federal government's approach to cybersecurity.

There are few "penalties for doing bad things" in cyberspace, said James A. Lewis, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, during a briefing in Washington on Wednesday sponsored by Government Executive. He noted that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's speech last week calling on Chinese authorities to investigate cyberattacks against Google marked the first time a U.S. leader has spoken out publicly about such an incident.

Late last year, President Obama named Howard Schmidt to serve as the government's cyber coordinator, seven months after announcing the creation of the position.

"It would be very interesting to read [Schmidt's] job description," said retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Harry D. Raduege Jr., chairman of the Deloitte Center for Innovation, who spent 35 years in the military working on information systems issues. A lot of people in government, Raduege said, "have responsibility, but no authority."

He said Schmidt, who also served as special adviser for cyberspace security for the White House during the George W. Bush administration, has the background and expertise necessary to succeed as cyber coordinator. But Schmidt "will have to use all of his network," Raduege said. "He will have to ask the people who do have authority to carry water for him."

Meanwhile, the Defense Department is facing its own challenges in dealing with cyber threats. Defense Secretary Robert Gates issued an order in June 2009 establishing a new Cyber Command. In October, President Obama named Lt. Gen. Keith B. Alexander, head of the National Security Agency, to head the command. But the prospect of Alexander leading an intelligence community organization and a Defense unit simultaneously has raised questions on Capitol Hill.

Alexander "would be the right person for this sort of awesome responsibility," Raduege said. And Lewis noted it makes sense to get the organization off the ground, even if it's not perfect.

"We're not going to get this right the first time," Lewis said. "Maybe it's better to launch this and fix it as we move forward."