Governance & Risk Management , Government , Industry Specific

Biden Fills 3 Cybersecurity Positions

Senior Director for Cyber and Others Announced
Biden Fills 3 Cybersecurity Positions
From left: Rob Joyce, Anne Neuberger and Michael Sulmeyer

President Joe Biden’s cybersecurity team is beginning to take shape, with three appointments recently announced

See Also: Frost Radar™ on Healthcare IoT Security in the United States

Meanwhile, the U.S. Senate on Wednesday approved Avril Haines as director of national intelligence.

Haines has called for better coordination between the private and public sectors on cybersecurity. She also said the nation needs to promote the use of basic cybersecurity practices by individuals, companies and government agencies (see: Biden Reveals Picks to Head DHS, Intelligence).

Michael Sulmeyer was named Monday to the position of senior director for cyber. He had previously served as a senior adviser to National Security Agency director and U.S. Cyber Command commander Gen. Paul Nakasone.

The White House has not yet described Sulmeyer's duties in his new role.

Last week, long-time National Security Agency cybersecurity staffer Rob Joyce was named director of the NSA's Cybersecurity Directorate, replacing Anne Neuberger. Joyce previously served at the U.S. embassy in London as the NSA's senior representative to the U.K.

Joyce has been in federal service since 1989, holding a variety of positions, including special assistant to the president and cybersecurity coordinator at the White House, deputy homeland security adviser and acting homeland security adviser.

The NSA’s Cybersecurity Directorate focuses on preventing and eradicating threats to national security systems and the defense industrial base.

Neuberger was appointed to the new position of deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology. She had headed the NSA Cybersecurity Directorate since it was created in 2019 and was in charge of the NSA's effort to counter Russia interference in the 2020 U.S. election.

Spending Proposal

Included in Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 economic recovery proposal is a plan to spend $9 billion to help the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the General Services Administration complete cybersecurity and IT modernization projects.

The Biden administration also proposes spending another $1 billion on three projects: hiring security experts to work for the Office of the U.S. Chief Information Security Officer as well as the Digital Service unit in the White House; launching additional IT projects within the GSA; and supporting a CISA project designed to improve monitoring and incident response across federal agencies.


About the Author

Doug Olenick

Doug Olenick

Former News Editor, ISMG

Olenick has covered the cybersecurity and computer technology sectors for more than 25 years. Prior to his stint as ISMG as news editor, Olenick was online editor for SC Media, where he covered every aspect of the cybersecurity industry and managed the brand's online presence. Earlier, he worked at TWICE - This Week in Consumer Electronics - for 15 years. He also has contributed to Forbes.com, TheStreet and Mainstreet.




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