When President Donald Trump took office earlier this year, cybersecurity policymakers and leaders held high hopes for executive-level policy action around cybersecurity. The administration announced in January it would convene experts to propose cybersecurity within 90 days. Despite missing the plan’s self-imposed deadline, Trump did sign a well-received executive order in May calling for enhancements to cybersecurity standards and workforce training.
Those hopes took a potential hit last week, as eight Obama-era appointees to Trump’s 28-member National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC) resigned in protest to a wide set of actions from Trump that, according to the group , “have threatened the security of the homeland.” The resignation letter they submitted also criticizes Trump for having paid “insufficient attention” to cybersecurity concerns around critical infrastructure, namely election-related infrastructure.
