IT Leader Welcomes Remarks by White House Cyber Security Adviser

Washington, DC – April 22, 2009

The Obama Administration deserves credit for elevating the debate over national cyber security policy and for soliciting extensive public input on that plan, the Business Software Alliance said today.

In remarks today at the RSA Security Conference in San Francisco, the White House cyber security adviser, Melissa Hathaway, said the President will soon unveil a new White House organizational structure to manage national cyber security policy, along with an action plan for prioritizing future work. Hathaway said the plan will reflect input from dozens of government agencies, more than 100 white papers, and more than 40 meetings with stakeholders. BSA co-hosted a meeting for Hathaway with high-tech leaders on March 5 and submitted detailed recommendations on March 19. 

Consistent with BSA’s recommendations, Hathaway emphasized the need for:

• Strong government leadership from the White House, because no single agency possesses all the resources and legal authority necessary to deal with the totality of this national and international priority;
• A close working partnership between the public and private sector, which designs, owns and operates most of the world’s information and communications infrastructure;
• A special effort to ensure a globally convergent, rather than divergent, policy framework; and
• A national cyber security research and development (R&D) plan that is developed and implemented jointly by government and industry.

“BSA member companies are committed to increasing confidence and trust in the online world, investing billions of dollars a year in advanced security solutions,” said BSA President and CEO Robert Holleyman.  “We appreciate that Ms. Hathaway expressed a strong commitment to working with the private sector to implement the White House action plan, and we look forward to a continuing partnership with the Administration and Congress.”  

Additional Information: Click here to view BSA’s 2009 Technology Policy Agenda, including recommendations on US cyber security policy. Click here to view the BSA letter to Melissa Hathaway.  

About BSA

The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the foremost organization dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world. BSA is the voice of the world's software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members represent one of the fastest growing industries in the world. BSA programs foster technology innovation through education and policy initiatives that promote copyright protection, cyber security, trade and e-commerce. BSA members include Adobe, Apple, Autodesk, Avid, Bentley Systems, Borland, CA, Cadence Design Systems, Cisco Systems, CNC Software/Mastercam, Corel, CyberLink, Dell, EMC, HP, IBM, Intel, Intuit, McAfee, Microsoft, Monotype Imaging, PTC, Quark, Quest Software, SAP, Siemens, Dassault Systemes SolidWorks, Sybase, Symantec, Synopsys, and The MathWorks.

Media Contact

Dale Curtis
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202-246-5659

Lars Anderson
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