U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) chaired a cybersecurity hearing last week to examine various opportunities for enhancing partnerships between the private sector and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The hearing, titled The Current State of DHS Private Sector Engagement for Cybersecurity, sought information regarding the department’s current partnerships, which include information sharing and analysis organizations, cyber information sharing and collaboration programs, sector coordinating councils, and the automated indicator sharing program.
“Our goal is to make sure that the private sector has every opportunity and every reason to take full advantage of DHS’ cybersecurity programs, so we can continue to work together to secure cyberspace,” Ratcliffe said. “We must now utilize the information we’ve been given to keep the ball moving in the right direction.”
Experts from the HITRUST Alliance, Intel Security Group, Symantec, Palo Alto Networks, and New America’s Open Technology Institute all provided testimony and suggested different priorities the Trump Administration should take to ensure new partnerships are substantive and effective.
Witnesses said DHS should retain the lead role in civilian-cyber partnerships and focus on implementing cyber roles and missions already established in law.
They also suggested more clarification was needed for specific expectations for the private sector when it comes to cybersecurity partnerships and that more cybersecurity-trained professionals were needed to address staffing shortages.