DHS announces new cybersecurity review board

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Thursday announced a new cybersecurity review board in response to President Biden’s executive order on improving the nation’s cybersecurity.

The Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) will connect government and industry leaders in cybersecurity to work together on improving cybersecurity nationwide.

“The Biden-Harris Administration has taken bold steps to meaningfully improve our cybersecurity resilience,” Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said in the announcement. “At the President’s direction, DHS is establishing the Cyber Safety Review Board to thoroughly assess past events, ask the hard questions, and drive improvements across the private and public sectors. I look forward to reviewing the Board’s recommendations regarding how we can better protect communities across our country as DHS works to build a more secure digital future.”

Members of the CSRB will jointly review cybersecurity events and endeavor to apply assessments to future initiatives aiming to protect American networks and infrastructure.

The first CSRB review will deal with weaknesses in the log4j software library that were uncovered in late 2021.

DHS Under Secretary for Policy Robert Silvers will be chairman of the CSRB, joined by Google Senior Director for Security Engineering Heather Adkins as deputy chairwoman.

“This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape how we draw lessons from cyber events and improve for the future,” said Silvers in the announcement. “My colleagues on the CSRB are luminaries in the field and I am honored to serve alongside them as the Board’s chair. Together, we will conduct a thorough review and issue recommendations that will enable both our national leaders and the private sector to better secure our country.”

The DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) will manage and fund the CSRB.

CISA Director Jen Easterly will appoint CSRB members with input from Silvers.