National Security Presidential Directive

February 1, 2008

The President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

The Business Software Alliance (BSA)* and its members commend your leadership in launching a major cyber initiative to defend government networks against cyber attacks.

While the details of National Security Presidential Directive 54/Homeland Security Presidential Directive 23 have not yet been publicly released, we understand that the initiative will feature several elements that have been long-standing priorities of the BSA. We look forward to opportunities to provide further input as the joint directive is implemented.

As owners, operators, and enablers of critical infrastructure, our member companies make fundamental contributions to anticipating threats, mitigating vulnerabilities, and securing infrastructure. From this vantage point, we support the joint directive’s emphasis on strengthening cyber security across federal agencies. We look forward to continuing to work with federal agencies, in a close public-private partnership, to maintain our nation’s cyber readiness.

We also believe your initiative presents an opportunity to increase the effectiveness of national mission-focused information sharing and operational response readiness. Critical infrastructure owners and operators have built capabilities and set up mechanisms that enhance their ability to share trusted information with the government and to respond to major incidents in an organized and effective manner. Given that the federal government uses much of the same infrastructure as the private sector (communication backbones, internet service providers, hardware and software providers, hosting companies, etc.), your initiative is well positioned to strengthen and contribute to these capabilities.

We also want to work with your Administration and Congress to help strike the right balance between the need to increase our nation’s cyber defenses, the private sector’s role in securing its critical infrastructure, and respect for the privacy of electronic communications.

Additionally, BSA and its member companies are on the front-lines every day, fighting cyber crime. Therefore, we welcome the initiative’s recognition of the need to empower law enforcement in its fight against cyber criminals. BSA is a leading advocate of congressional passage this year of legislation, such as S. 2168 (the Identity Theft Enforcement and Restitution Act) and H.R. 2290 (The Cyber-Security Enhancement Act), that closes gaps in cyber crime laws and increases law enforcement’s resources in this area.

Finally, our member companies invest considerable resources in research and development (R&D), to develop cutting edge secure information technology solutions. We encourage the federal government to include in the cyber initiative significant cyber security R&D investments that will help preserve America’s technology leadership.

We welcome your leadership on this major initiative, which will help build critical cyber defenses and give cyber security issues the prominence they deserve in the federal government.

Sincerely,

Robert W. Holleyman, II
President and CEO