US announced new cyber security agency CTIIC to respond to enhanced cyber threats

The US on 11 February 2015 have announced the formation of a new cyber security agency, The new Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center (CTIIC), to respond to enhanced cyber threats.

The CTIIC will foil cyber attacks by sharing intelligence across agencies during a crisis.

The CTIIC will be created as part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and will be structured like the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC). Initially, the agency will comprise a staff of about 50 people and have a budget of 35 million US dollars.

The agency will work in the area of cyber security and will be tasked with analyzing and coordinating responses to cyber threats. Moreover, the cyber security strategy would focus on four elements:

•Improve cyber defenses using the Cyber security Framework developed last year by the National Institute of Standards and Technology so every organization can manage cyber risks effectively.

•Enhance the government's ability to disrupt, respond to and recover from cyber threats.

•Boost international cooperation between law enforcement agencies to hold criminals around the world accountable.

•Make cyber space intrinsically more secure by replacing passwords with more secure technologies and building more resilient networks, and enhancing consumer protections online.

Comment

President of US Barack Obama has moved cyber security to the top of his 2015 agenda after recent hacking attacks against Sony Pictures.

He recently released a fiscal 2016 budget that seeks 14 billion US dollars to better protect federal and private networks from hacking threats.

In his State of the Union speech, he announced several new initiatives to bolster online security and improve access to cyberspace. Further, he announced to host a cyber summit in second week of February 2015 with industry and Government leaders at Stanford University in California.