AFTER ACTION REPORT

In October 2011, The New School, in conjunction with the Richard Lounsbery Foundation, convened Cyber Security Policy Round Table to examine the fundamental challenges facing the nation’s cybersecurity infrastructure and discuss potential solutions that could serve as a foundation for a holistic cyber policy doctrine. The New School gathered a diverse set of the Round Table participants drawn from the key stakeholders in this debate, and asked them to help to develop a consensus regarding the next steps needed to bolster the country’s cyber defenses and that would address the needs of all relevant parties. The Round Table was chaired by former Senator and The New School President Emeritus J. Robert Kerrey, who drew upon his previous experiences as former Member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and the 9/11 Commission to provide valuable insight and attention to this discussion. The members of the Round Table included persons drawn from the areas of government (including federal agency employees, congressional staff, and the Ranking Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence), private sector (including a director from a government defense contractor, and the CEO of a small-business), and academia (including the president emeritus of a nationally-recognized university). Round table members were asked to participate both as knowledgeable individuals and as representatives of their organizations, and to maintain confidentiality of their deliberations to promote open and candid discourse. The Round Table chose to be bound by the Chatham House Rule to maintain the confidentiality of all conversations, so that participants could converse frankly without fear of their words resurfacing at a later date. The members of the Round Table are privileged to have had this opportunity to discuss this timely topic and to lend their personal and professional insights. All can agree that there is much work to be accomplished in this subject, and that teamwork and collaboration will be quintessential to achieving success in the coming years. This report assesses and makes recommendations in identifying the necessary steps that must be followed to secure the nation’s cyber infrastructure.

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ORGANIZATIONS ATTENDING

  • VIR-SEC

    ABOUT

    VIR-SEC

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    A veteran-owned small business, Vir-Sec, Inc. has created a Virtual Security methodology that allows an organization to remove all secure data access from its website, thereby eliminating access to those who have no need or right to the data. Representing the next generation of Internet security, it achieves an unprecedented degree of system reliability and trustworthiness through non-browser based dual-factor authentication technology.

  • HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES

    ABOUT

    HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES

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    With jurisdiction over the U.S. Department of Defense and matters pertaining to the common defense policy of the United States, the Armed Services Committee has a vested interest in creating a strong and cohesive cyber security policy to protect the nation’s cyber infrastructure. As such, the Committee has created the Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee to respond and protect against unconventional threats such as cyber attacks.

  • HOUSE PERMANENT/SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE

    ABOUT

    HOUSE PERMANENT/SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE
    ON INTELLIGENCE

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    With jurisdiction over the U.S. Department of Defense and matters pertaining to the common defense policy of the United States, the Armed Services Committee has a vested interest in creating a strong and cohesive cyber security policy to protect the nation’s cyber infrastructure. As such, the Committee has created the Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee to respond and protect against unconventional threats such as cyber attacks.

  • HOUSE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS

    ABOUT

    HOUSE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS

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    Through its responsibility of influencing United States foreign policy, the Committee is helping to develop a clear and coordinated strategy for international cyber engagement, including a framework that will provide internationally acceptable principles to mitigate cyberwarfare and prosecute cyber criminals that transcend physical borders.

  • L-3 COMMUNICATIONS

    ABOUT

    L-3 COMMUNICATIONS

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    Since the start of the rise of the digital revolution, L-3 has been playing a critical role in securing networks and telecommunications systems from outside attackers. With the world’s growing dependence on instantly accessible, relevant and accurate information, L-3 remains critically important in protecting the nation’s cyber infrastructure.

    Christopher Cleary is the Director for Cyber Intelligence at L-3 Communications within their Reston, VA-based Cyber Development Office. This office is responsible for the development of corporate-wide cyber strategies, cyber product and solution offerings, cyber investments, partnering, and thought leadership within the cyber domain. Prior to L-3, Mr. Cleary was the Director of Cyber Strategy and Policy for Sparta dba Cobham Analytic Solutions.

    Mr. Cleary, a Commander in the Naval Reserves, recently completed a 30 months tour with US CYBER COMMAND where he served as a Computer Network Operations Planner leading an Operational Planning Team focused on studying "Advanced Persistent Threats" to DoD networks. During his tenure at CYBERCOM he was one of the few Officers to lead a forward deployed element supporting combat operations in the CENTCOM AOR.

  • PARSONS INSTITUTE FOR INFORMATION MAPPING (PIIM)

    ABOUT

    PARSONS INSTITUTE FOR INFORMATION MAPPING (PIIM)

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    Co-founded in 2002 by former Nebraskan Senator Robert Kerrey and Professor William Bevington of the Parsons The New School for Design, The Parsons Institute for Information Mapping (PIIM) of The New School is a research and development facility located in New York City. PIIM’s mission is to advance the field of Knowledge Visualization through academic and commercial pursuits.

    PIIM’s capabilities include the creation of powerful tools and methods that provide decision makers with novel ways to visualize data, networks, and geospatial interactions. Through our knowledge visualization practice we have successfully created a number of tools including the GeoSpace and Media Tool (GMT) for the U.S. Congress; the Emergency Operations Center Shared Situational Awareness system for The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) to provide advanced collaboration and monitoring of the New York and New Jersey region airports, ports, and roadways; an airport passenger security application for The Raytheon Company; American Hotspots Project for Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Long-term Care and Analysis Tool; Public Opinion Tool; and the Debate Tracker. PIIM is presently designing and re-thinking a conceptual next-generation Graphic User Interface (GUI) for the U.S. Department of Defense’s electronic medical record system.

  • FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION (FBI)

    ABOUT

    FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION (FBI)

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    As an intelligence-driven and a threat-focused national security and law enforcement organization, the mission of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is to protect and defend the United States against terrorist and foreign intelligence threats, to uphold and enforce the criminal laws of the United States, and to provide leadership and criminal justice services to federal, state, municipal, and international agencies and partners.

  • GEORGE C. MARSHALL INSTITUTE

    ABOUT

    GEORGE C. MARSHALL INSTITUTE

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    The George C. Marshall Institute was established in 1984 as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation to conduct technical assessments of scientific issues with an impact on public policy. In every area of public policy, from national defense, to the environment, to the economy, decisions are shaped by developments in and arguments about science and technology. The need for accurate and impartial technical assessments has never been greater. However, even purely scientific appraisals are often politicized and misused by interest groups. The Marshall Institute seeks to counter this trend by providing policymakers with rigorous, clearly written and unbiased technical analyses on a range of public policy issues. With the rise of cybersecurity as an important federal policy topic, the Institute has delved into helping provide policymakers with information that will allow them to craft a framework suitable for the nation’s cybersecurity needs.

  • RICHARD LOUNSBERY FOUNDATION

    ABOUT

    RICHARD LOUNSBERY FOUNDATION

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    The Richard Lounsbery Foundation aims to enhance national strengths in science and technology through support of programs in the following areas: science and technology components of key U.S. policy issues; elementary and secondary science and math education; historical studies and contemporary assessments of key trends in the physical and biomedical sciences; and start-up assistance for establishing the infrastructure of research projects. As such, U.S. cybersecurity policy has become one of the issues that the Foundation seeks to develop.

  • SENATE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY
    AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

    ABOUT

    SENATE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY
    AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

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    The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs’ Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations study and investigate syndicated or organized crime which operate in or otherwise utilize the facilities of interstate and international commerce. In addition, they study and investigate all other aspects of crime and lawlessness within the U.S. which have an impact upon or affect the national health, welfare, and safety including but not limited to investment fraud schemes, commodity and security fraud, computer fraud, and the use of offshore banking and corporate facilities to carry out criminal objectives. Finally, they study and investigate the effectiveness of present national security methods.

  • HOUSE COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY

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    HOUSE COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE,
    AND TECHNOLOGY

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    The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology’s Subcommittee on Research and Science Education has jurisdiction over cyber policy with respect to computing, communications, networking, and information technology. In addition, the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation focus on the following areas: small business competitiveness; tax, antitrust, regulatory and other legal and governmental policies as they relate to technological development and commercialization; technology transfer, including civilian use of defense technologies; patent and intellectual property policy; international technology trade; and Small Business Innovation Research and Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) programs.

  • SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE,
    AND TRANSPORTATION

    ABOUT

    SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE,
    AND TRANSPORTATION

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    The Subcommittee on Science and Space for the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation has jurisdiction over issues concerning science, engineering, and technology research and development.

  • SENATE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS

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    SENATE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS

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    The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations’ Subcommittee on International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental Protection contain jurisdiction in areas such as international investment, protection of intellectual property, and technological transfer.

  • RIDGEWOOD PARTNERS

    ABOUT

    RIDGEWOOD PARTNERS

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    Ridgewood Partners provide security and intelligence consulting solutions to the Federal Government that help accelerate performance, protect infrastructure and provide homeland defense. They also provide support in technology insertion and logistics support. Many of their company’s professionals hold security clearances and at least one IT security certification. Finally, they assess every part of an enterprise in order to secure network infrastructure, mainframe systems and web-based applications.

  • THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND’S CYBER SECURITY CENTER (MC²)

    ABOUT

    THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND’S
    CYBER SECURITY CENTER (MC²)

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    MC² is partnering with government and industry to provide educational programs to prepare the future cybersecurity workforce, and develop new, innovative technologies to defend against cybersecurity attacks. MC² is unique in its holistic approach to cybersecurity education, research and technology development, stressing "more-than-tech," interdisciplinary solutions. MC² brings together experts from engineering and computer science with colleagues from across campus in fields such as economics, social sciences and public policy to help establish broad-based cybersecurity initiatives.

Bob Kerry

ABOUT THE HOST

Joseph Robert “Bob” Kerrey is the President Emeritus of The New School in New York, New York. He has served in this role since 2010, after having served as President for almost 10 years and having led numerous successful transformations at the institution. Mr. Kerrey has remained active in public policy and was a member of the 9-11 Commission. Prior to this position, Mr. Kerrey served as a United States Senator from Nebraska from 1989 to 2001. Prior to his appointment, Senator Kerrey won the 1982 election for the Governor of Nebraska. Senator Kerrey served in the United States Navy as a SEAL during the Vietnam War and was the first Navy SEAL to win the prestigious Medal of Honor. Senator Kerrey is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (Lincoln, NE).