A washingtonpost.com article from: rpetersen () educause edu

[Rodney Petersen <rpetersen () EDUCAUSE EDU>]

You have been sent this message from rpetersen () educause edu as a courtesy of the Washington Post - 
http://www.washingtonpost.com 
 
 The EDUCAUSE/Internet2 Computer & Network Security Task Force is closely monitoring developments within the new 
Department of Homeland Security (see new web site at www.dhs.gov).  The article below describes how the new Department 
will consolidate cybersecurity units.  Additionally, another recent article in the Washington Post described plans to 
fill leadership posts within the new Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection division of DHS.  The task 
force and the EDUCAUSE D.C. policy office will continue to monitor developments, keep our community informed, and 
invite key leaders from government to participate in conferences or related forums.

Please let me know if you have any questions or insights about these developments.

Rodney Petersen
Security Task Force Coordinator
 
 To view the entire article, go to http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38483-2003Jan24.html
 
 Homeland Security Goes Virtual
 
 By Brian Krebs The Department of Homeland Security is still finalizing plans for a physical home in the District of 
Columbia, but the newly created cabinet agency officially opened its digital home today -- a relatively deep Web site 
that seeks to demystify the biggest reorganization of the federal government in 50 years.
 


 The site, www.dhs.gov, contains more than 1,500 pages of information, mostly text and hyperlinks seeking to explain 
what the new agency means to businesses, citizens and government employees.
 


 One prominent feature on the homepage is a color-coded graphic that shows the current "threat condition," intended to 
represent nation's vulnerability to terrorist attack. The chart indicates that the current threat level is "elevated" 
(yellow), meaning there is a "significant risk of terrorist attacks."
 


 The site is organized around several broad categories that group the 22 agencies that comprise the department, 
including "Research and Technology," "Threats and Protection," "Emergencies and Disasters," "Travel and 
Transportation," "Immigration and Borders," and a section for businesses and contractors called "Working with DHS."
 


 The site also details the mission and leadership of the five major divisions in the department, including a chart 
depicting the hierarchy of each within the agency. The site also provides details for those interested in applying for 
a job in Homeland Security.
 


 Homeland Security spokeswoman Tasia Scolinos said the agency will add additional features to the site in the coming 
months.
 


 "Right now it's sort of a skeleton site, but we wanted to make sure we had  a site to stand up today as our public 
face that tells the American people a little bit about the department and what we hope to accomplish," she said.
 


 It remains unclear, however, whether each of the individual agencies moving to Homeland Security will retain their 
current Web presence or if some of them will be absorbed into the DHS site, Scolinos said.
 


 The DHS.gov site was designed by Deloitte Consulting, and has been nearly six weeks in the making.
 

New Department Consolidates Cybersecurity Units


 The Department of Homeland Security is a hub for information about attacks on the nation's most vital information 
systems, absorbing computer security programs now scattered across five federal agencies.
 

 Here is a list the programs that are folded into the agency, and a description of what they do:
 

 • Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office (CIAO - www.ciao.gov): Established at the Commerce Department in 1998, CIAO 
coordinates the protection of networks that support essential services like water, power, telecommunications and 
transportation systems. Nearly 90 percent of these
systems are owned and operated by private companies, and CIAO has organized efforts to identify and fix physical and 
cyber-vulnerabilities in such systems.
 

 Some 70 CIAO employees will move to the homeland security department by March 1. With a proposed budget of nearly $30 
million, one of CIAO's new responsibilities will be to conduct an inventory of key private sector assets. CIAO Director 
John Tritak is considered a likely candidate to fill one of two assistant secretary positions in the department's 
Information Assurance and Infrastructure Protection directorate.
 

 • National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC - www.nipc.gov): Created in 1998 as a division of the Federal Bureau 
of Investigation (FBI), NIPC is the government's cybersecurity task force, alerting businesses and the public to 
physical threats against the nation's
vital systems, or to computer security holes that could undermine the performance of such systems. Roughly 300 NIPC 
positions will migrate to the new department by the March 1 transfer date.
 

 • Federal Computer Incident Response Center (FedCIRC - www.fedcirc.gov): A division of the U.S. General Services 
Administration, FedCIRC is the government's central point for responding to cyberattacks, working closely with the NIPC 
and public and private security outfits. Budgeted at just over $10 million for 2003, FedCIRC will transfer 
approximately 20 employees to the new department by the beginning of March.
 

 • National Communications System (NCS - www.ncs.gov): The NCS was installed at the Department of Defense in 1963 to 
provide priority communications to support critical military and government functions during emergencies. The Bush 
administration has asked Congress for $155 million for the NCS to continue its mission at the homeland security 
department -- coordinating emergency preparedness for the telecommunications sector. The NCS's 90 employees are slated 
to move to their new headquarters by May 1.
 

 • National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center (NISAC): A joint project of the Los Alamos and Sandia 
national laboratories, NISAC was created last year by the USA Patriot Act. NISAC is charged with assessing weaknesses 
caused by the complex interdependencies of critical infrastructures. With a proposed budget of $20 million and a 
handful of employees, NISAC will provide modeling, simulation and analysis of the nation's infrastructures. The program 
also intends to create a "biological surveillance simulation system" to track the movement of lethal infectious 
diseases through mobile and urban populations.
 

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