Nearly a year after taking office President Obama has named Howard Schmidt as the White House’s cyber-security coordinator, a position created to help carry out the administration’s cyber-security activities across the government.
It remains to be seen how much authority the cyber-security "czar" will truly have, but John Brennan, a presidential homeland security aid called Schmidt "one of the world’s leading authorities on computer security, with some 40 years of experience in government, business and law enforcement.
Schmidt has served as the chief security officer for eBay and Microsoft in addition to holding cyber-security posts in the federal government.
He will be charged with developing a comprehensive strategy to secure the nation’s networks, ensure an organized and unified response to incidents, strengthening public private partnerships, driving research and development and undertaking a national campaign for cyber-security awareness.
The chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., welcomed the appointment, but also announced plans to introduce legislation that would make the position Senate-confirmed.
