News on Domestic Security Policy

The Obama administration is moving cautiously on a new pilot program that would both detect and stop cyber attacks against government computers, while trying to ensure citizen privacy protections. The pilot program, known as Einstein 3, was supposed to launch in February. But the Department of Homeland Security is still pulling the plan together, according to senior administration officials. Einstein 3 has triggered debate and privacy concerns because the program will use National Security Agency technology, which is ...

The Obama administration is developing plans to seek up to 1,500 National Guard volunteers to step up the military's counter-drug efforts along the Mexican border, senior administration officials said Monday. The plan is a stopgap measure being worked out between the Defense Department and the Homeland Security Department, and comes despite Pentagon concerns about committing more troops to the border — a move some officials worry will be seen as militarizing the region. Senior administration ...

The former cybersecurity chief at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is now the head of ICANN, a primary internet governance organization. The CEO appointment of Rod Beckstrom, 48, was announced at ICANN's international meeting in Sydney, Australia. He was the former director of the DHS National Cybersecurity Center (NCSC), and had quit March 13 in a dispute over the direction the agency was ...

Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Tuesday ordered the establishment of a U.S. Cyber Command to protect military networks and organize digital security efforts underway at the Pentagon. The command also is charged with "synchronizing warfighting effects across the global security environment, as well as providing support to civil authorities and international partners," according to a memo issued Tuesday by Gates to senior ...