DHS five years later: So, where's the beef, guys?

President Bush celebrated the five-year anniversary of the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday. In conjunction with the event, DHS dutifully released a fact sheet marking the department's priorities and progress since the inception.

Michael Chertoff: Where's the beef?

(Credit: DHS)

Here's the part relating to IT:

"Increasing Cyber Security: DHS established the Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) to provide a 24-hour watch, warning, and response operations center, which in 2007 issued over 200 actionable alerts on cyber security vulnerabilities or incidents. US-CERT developed the EINSTEIN intrusion detection program, which collects, analyzes, and shares computer security information across the federal civilian government. EINSTEIN is currently deployed at 15 federal agencies, including DHS, and plans are in place to expand the program to all federal departments and agencies. In addition, the Secret Service currently maintains 24 Electronic Crimes Task Forces to prevent, detect, mitigate, and aggressively investigate cyber attacks on our nation's financial and critical infrastructures."

Somebody, pass me the No-Doz before I fall off my chair.

Wish I could report otherwise, but when it comes to network security, DHS appears to be more of a wet noodle than even its sharpest critics assumed. The truth is they still don't have much to celebrate when it comes to cybersecurity.Talk with security consultants and former government officials involved with DHS and you come away wondering what these folks do all day. I've listened to countless government leaders since 2003 promise big advances just around the bend. I'm still waiting for something important to write about.

Obviously, it's easy to take shots at DHS from the peanut gallery, but come on, already. The government-led effort to shore up the nation's cybersecurity still remains a work-in-progress.

Then again, DHS grapples with deeply rooted bureaucratic challenges. Few experts want to talk on the record but check out this recent Washington Post piece. It paints a damning picture of an organization struggling with high-profile projects going nowhere. And the piece doesn't even begin to get into the cybersecurity question. The reason: despite all the reams of paper and la-di-da speeches, it remains on the political back burner in Washington.

And that's where it will stay, I'm afraid, until we get nailed by a real cyber-disaster.

[Get_Bent]

Bottom line: the Department of Homeland Security is yet another way to squander our tax dollars.

[russkeller]

I'm not totally sure who to be mad at here. The people running the DHS for not knowing how to do it or congress. If the clearly laughable border protection protection is any indication my guess it's congress that dosn't really want the job done.

[russkeller]

My bad just saying congress. By that I mean the government in general not JUST the Congress.

[n3td3v]

They still haven't reached out to normal everyday folks like me in the security community "the underground".<br /><br />Yeah as if folks like me are going to e-mail [e-mail] or fill out <a class="jive-link-external" href="https://forms.us-cert.gov/report/" target="_newWindow">https://forms.us-cert.gov/report/</a> with the big government logos kicking about, it scares the normal folks away who have the real intelligence on whats going on.<br /><br />Its still too difficult for joe bloggs hacker who works at the local supermarket during the day but plays a big role in the security community by night.<br /><br />I want the cyber security folks at us-cert to setup a new website that doesn't scare people away with big government logos etc.<br /><br />The US government should be reaching out to folks, they have failed to do this.<br /><br />They always do the big government thing, and the only time they remotely "reach out" is through big poltical speeches by top political folks, saying things like, "we need your help guys" or "join our cyber command for the US cyber command"... along with more scary cyber war propaganda... nothing thats friendly looking that reaches out to the everyday folks in the security community.<br /><br />fact is, America has an agressive approach to just about everything and that scares people away.<br /><br />From cyber security to real life security, saying "We're the big americans with the big guns and we'll kick your ass if you mess with us" is the totally wrong approach.<br /><br />You guys need to tone your world stage approach a bit and be a bit more user friendly.<br /><br />I think everyone agrees, America on steriods approach to security has done them no favours.<br /><br />In the cyber security arena, they should be reaching out to the international community, not scaring them away with us cyber commands, cyber war threats and other political propaganda to scare everyone in the world into shutting up through intimidation.<br /><br />they've got their cyber security policy all wrong, and it reflects the same as the dreadful mistakes made in real life security, such as Iraq, and Iran.<br /><br />Cut the steriods, and get back to the America I once knew, the fluffy disneyland friendly America when folks used to goto your theme parks and stuff, now people are scared of America, especially the cyber geeks who don't live in your wonderful country who you should be reaching out to via a non-agressive macho government federal sovereign website.<br /><br />bottom line: america scares us... reverse that and reap the cyber rewards of cool intelligence from the super market underground, not the corporate &#38; gov folks you reach out to at the moment.<br /><br />i've been reading the news and you're actually starting to scare your own people as well.<br /><br />somethings up with america and i just can't pin point when it went wrong, why it went wrong and how it can be reversed.<br /><br />ack, well at least start with a friendly site for us supermarket grade folks in the underground who have the real cyber intelligence to give you.<br /><br />regards,<br /><br />n3td3v

[Dalkorian]

You're not giving them enough credit Get_Bent. Not only are they squandering away our tax dollars (squandering them into their bank accounts!), they're also shredding the Constitution and reorganizing the old east german stasi for fuhrer bushit's use.<br /><br />Bottom line - the department of fatherland security must go. Now. Before it's too late (if it isn't already).

[scdecade]

The idea of celebrating a government beauracracy is pathetic. Bush is a war criminal.

[PzkwVIb]

The creation of a department of Fatherland, sorry, Homeland security was idiotic from the very beginning, it was the knee-jerk reactions of politicians who needed to be seen to be "doing something." My vote is do something intelligent or do nothing. <br /><br />Right now DHS lets people board planes with 8" long sharpened pencils bit not 1" pocket knives. Almost all of their "improvements" really do nothing to increase safety and just perpetuate the fear that they are claiming to aleve. For reasonable intelligent people most of theirs safeguards can be seen as meaningless gestures and needless annoyances. <br /><br />So much for the land of the brave.<br /><br />As a citizen, I am ashamed of those who would rather be seen to be doing something as opposed to waiting and doing something intelligent and I am sickened that so many my countrymen actually ask for even more government bumbling, sorry, interference in our lives.