[infowar.de] CIAO bemüht sich um KRITIS in US-Bundesstaaten und Kommunen

[Ralf Bendrath <bendrath -! - zedat - fu-berlin - de>]

Infowar.de, http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~bendrath/liste.html
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http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0202/021102td1.htm

February 11, 2002 

Critical infrastructure office reaches out to states, localities 

By Liza Porteus, National Journal's Technology Daily 

The Commerce Department's Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office
(CIAO) this week will begin a series of regional conferences with state
and local officials and industry in an effort to find effective ways of
protecting the nation's critical infrastructure, including computer
systems.

To launch in Texas, the four meetings will address the new threats of
the 21st century, which is going to require "unparalleled cooperation"
between government and industry, CIAO Deputy Director Nancy Wong told
the National Conference of Lieutenant Governors on Friday.

Wong hailed efforts made by industry, particularly after the Sept. 11
terrorist attacks, to organize itself by sectors to determine best
practices for protecting computer systems. She said that cooperation
"was quite an education" for government officials that many of the
industries were ready to deal with the aftermath of the attacks.

Wong said that under the Clinton administration's Presidential Directive
63--which sought to fortify the nation's networks against
cyberattacks--"every single critical infrastructure sector" has been
brought to the table in the past two years to determine protection
plans.

Cyber security is a "major component" of the overall homeland security
plans being developed, Wong and other federal officials said. Michael
Byrne, senior director for response and recovery for the Office of
Homeland Security, said the four key homeland security areas that would
be funded under President Bush's fiscal 2003 budget proposal are first
responders, bioterrorism, information technology and border security.
The office has until July 1 to present its national strategy.

Part of the IT strategy that is underway is a "special caption
information" card, or SCI, which the CIA is distributing to the nation's
governors, allowing them to receive classified intelligence information
relating to potential threats. Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin urged her
colleagues to lobby officials to get clearance for them to receive the
SCI cards, as well.

Byrne detailed how the $3.5 billion allotted in Bush's proposed budget
for aiding state and local first responders would be distributed. Based
on a pre capital formula grant, funds would be given to governors, where
25 percent of funds would be used as state discretionary funds to
protect critical infrastructures, and the remaining 75 percent would be
distributed to localities by the governors based on population and
location of critical infrastructures.

Companies such as AOL Time Warner, Eastman Kodak and Gateway have been
working with the Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC), part of the
State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security. The group has outlined
the private sector's position on issues such as protection of
proprietary information and technology and encryption needs overseas. It
is tasked with developing ways to protect business information and
preventing transnational crime, and its goal is to develop an effective
security communication network.

Robert Franks, assistant director of State's Diplomatic Security
Service, said OSAC is encouraging businesses to divulge potential
vulnerabilities abroad and at home so government can aid them in
protection efforts.

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