Howard Schmidt, vice-chairman of the US president's Critical
Infrastructure Protection Board, said his government is close to
releasing an updated plan for protecting the US's most critical
systems and networks.
Schmidt, former chief security officer at Microsoft, said a
national plan for information systems protection will be released
this summer. The document will supersede an earlier plan released
by the Clinton administration in 2000 and will be based largely on
input from private-sector companies, according to Schmidt.
National Security Council experts are poring through more than 127
questions and issues raised by companies that operate the bulk of
the critical infrastructure in the US, including the
telecommunications grid, power stations and banking and finance
networks, said Schmidt.
In addition to detailing the progress of the national security
plan, Schmidt outlined three priorities that have taken shape since
the presidential advisory board was established in the wake of the
11 September attacks: establishing the Cyber Warning Information
Network (CWIN), which would enable authorities to "short-circuit
viruses" and other attacks at the boundaries of critical networks;
focusing more on research and development to increase the lead time
on identifying future threats; and improving education, including
at the primary grade level, on ethical principles and computer
use.
Although terrorists are thought to have used the Internet primarily
as a communications mechanism, there are fears that future attacks
could be accompanied by cyber-based incidents. "We never know whose
fingers are on the keyboard on the other end," said Schmidt. The
Bush administration is working with G8 member countries to
establish treaties to facilitate prosecutions for international
cybercrimes, said Schmidt.
And while he is satisfied that progress has been made by the
companies that are responsible for protecting critical systems in
the US, Schmidt said the Bush administration has a "particular
concern" about the telecommunications grid and banking and finance
systems that people rely on daily.