22 May 2012

The White House Hires Michael Daniel As New Cyber Security Chief

The White House Hires Michael Daniel As New Cyber Security Chief

The White House announced that they have picked a new cyber-security officer amid furious debate between the White House and both chambers of Congress around the future of American cyber defence.
Michael Daniel, a longtime member of the Office of Management and Budget’s national security squad, will fill the gap left by Howard Schmidt, who announced his departure earlier this week. Daniel has been working with securities issues for 10 years and watched over multiple Defense Department programs, as well as the budgets for the federal government’s various cybersecurity programs. He has been involved with “virtually every major issue affecting the Intelligence Community,” according to a White House statement.
“I am very honored to be asked to take on such an important role, especially at a time when cybersecurity issues are so prominent,” said Daniel in a statement. 

What does that mean for the future of the cyber security issue? Probably that we can expect his knowledge of the intelligence community to play a part in not just tracking down hackers, but determining the lines that need to be crossed with future SOPA-like bills. So while this sounds like a relatively nondescript appointment, Daniel will almost definitely be a major player the next time someone comes for your internet.


-Source (Mashable, Gizmodo)