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Director of National Security Agency speaks about private, government partnerships [The Augusta Chronicle, Ga.](Augusta Chronicle (GA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 24--The director of the National Security Agency said Thursday that the nation's security rests on breaking down barriers between private and government sectors specializing in cyber defense. Adm. Michael Rogers, also the commander of U.S. Cyber Command, said the government alone can't protect the nation's cyber infrastructure. Private industries must share their innovations, breakthroughs, needs and challenges with the NSA, and vice versa, he said. "Another challenge for us is, traditionally, in our structure as a nation, we have tried to very strongly differentiate between what is a private sector function, what is a governmental function and what is a function that really falls under national security. I would argue cyber crosses all three of those lines," Rogers said. Rogers was the keynote speaker at the Cyber Education Summit at Georgia Regents University. More than 500 military leaders, educators, industry representatives and others convened at the J. Harold Harrison Education Commons Building. The event aimed to educate university leaders and the community on the need for developing innovative partnerships and curriculums in cyber fields to educate the future workforce. U.S. Cyber Command is assembling a 6,200-person workforce, some of whom will be located at Fort Gordon, where the Army Cyber Command is relocating its headquarters from the Washington, D.C., area. Fort Gordon also houses an NSA facility that employs thousands of cyber intelligence workers. The growing workforce demands improvements to educational initiatives, Rogers said. Cyber training needs to begin in elementary and high school to ready students for post-secondary degrees. Formal education, however, is not the only indicator of future success, he said. Some workers have a natural aptitude for the cyber field without earning a degree, he said. Recruiting a talented workforce is the foundation for cyber work, but industries and the government must work together to harness capabilities, Rogers said. The government has unmatched experience in cyber defense and sophisticated equipment that can benefit private companies, he said. Addressing criticism brought against the NSA for its massive surveillance programs, Rogers said it's difficult to encourage private industry to share information with the government. Legislation to establish liability protection for corporations would be one incentive that would open the door, he said. "Cyber represents a tremendous vulnerability. You have to admit it's one of the greatest challenges that has ever affected us as a nation," Rogers said. ___ (c)2014 The Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, Ga.) Visit The Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, Ga.) at chronicle.augusta.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |